SWAN MILLS HOLIDAYS, TAKE ONE
by TiAdoro914
Summary: Emma & Regina have just moved in together, and will be celebrating the holiday season as a couple with Henry and their extended family (the Charmings, Zelena & more). This is a fluff & smut fest that will track along with the holiday season. A little light-hearted SwanQueen love.
1. Chapter 1

**SWAN MILLS HOLIDAYS, TAKE ONE**

RATING: M

DISCLAIMER: I don't own ONCE, just wanted to play with the characters a bit. If I did, you can be sure SwanQueen would have been canon since Season 2.

A/N: There are so many SQ stories that I love. Really, really love. And so many wonderful women I've met (hi Twitter friends!) since joining the fandom. So to say thank you, here is some SwanQueen fluff and smut.

The first two chapters will go up two days in a row, then posting will happen ideally once a week. The story should track along with the holiday season.

Dedicated to my wife, love you babes. And to SWEN and the amazing authors in our fandom.

* * *

 **CHAPTER 1:**

"Gina," Emma grimaced as she wrestled an orange and black Tupperware up from the basement, "where do you want this last one to go?"

"By the front door please, it's the lights, correct? Labeled 'outside decorations?'" Regina responded from the kitchen.

Emma mumbled an incoherent response as she finally was done hauling the boxes up from the basement. "I think you had me move in just so you would never have to carry anything heavy again Regina," Emma called, as she made her way to the living room to plop down on the sofa and take a rest.

Closing her eyes for a moment, a smile began to creep across Emma's face. For as much grief as she enjoyed giving Regina, she could not believe she had officially moved into 108 Mifflin Street and was there to stay. She lived with Regina and their son now, her leather jackets tucked away in the closet she shared with Regina, a photo of her parents and brother Neal displayed on the mantel in the living room, her blanket displayed proudly on the chase lounger in the master bedroom she now had taken residence in.

It was a long road to get them to this point, but she could not be happier now that they were there.

As the telltale sound of heels made their click click down the hallway, Emma let the grin remain on her face as she could smell the presence of the woman she loved moving closer to where she lay. A hint of apples, a bit of cinnamon and a natural sweet scent that made her, her.

"Thank you dear," Regina whispered, as she leaned down to place a gentle kiss on Emma's pink lips. "And of course I had you finally move in with us just to get out of carrying anything heavy ever again. I'm glad we are on the same page about this," Regina chuckled as Emma opened her eyes, a playful scowl inching across her face. She could not help it, whenever Emma carried anything very heavy, the way her muscular arms strained and moved, sometimes glistening with sheen of sweat, well, it was a huge turn on for Regina. Her eyes had a faraway look as she remember Emma moving in, wearing that white tank top, her muscles straining – that was a damn good day, she thought, before her attention came back to the woman before her. "You are also in charge of all bug removal, you are aware of this, right?"

"Hey, I thought it was my good looks and Charming personality that won you over. Finally," she replied, pulling the brunette down onto her lap.

"Careful Miss Swan! I brought you something sweet to drink as reward for all your hard work. And all the hard work you still have left to do, dear. Henry should be back from practice soon," she reminded the blond as she settled into her lap, "so you won't have to do all the manual labor yourself."

Emma took the hot chocolate Regina had been holding and stole a careful sip, her lips parting, her pink tongue darting out to test the temperature before she smiled into the mug to enjoy the first taste. While Emma was having a moment with her hot chocolate, Regina was having another moment of her own, her eyes focused on Emma's lips, her tongue, the way she slowly exhaled before she drank. She was so relaxed in this moment, so content, Regina was just happy to watch.

After allowing Emma a few more sips, she carefully extracted the mug from her hands, placing it on a coaster on the coffee table and took Emma's chin in her right hand, pulling her eyes up to gaze into those beautiful hazel, sometimes green, eyes.

"Happy first official Halloween living together Emma," she whispered to the blond.

Emma's eyes grew a little glassy, enjoying the moment, taking it in, allowing herself to be present and totally engaged with the woman sitting on top of her. Her hand softly pulled out the shirt tucked into Regina's sleek black pants, finding the skin so adored to brush softly as Regina spoke. Goose flesh appeared on Regina's back with the soft soft soft caress.

They had been through so much together, lost lovers and friends, fought dragons and pirates, saved their son from Peter Pan and navigated through the Underworld together. It had been heart breaking at times, stressful and sad, but Regina teaching her to do magic, watching their son grow up, together, and realizing who they were to each other was much more than co-parents, and best friends. They were meant to be together. And while that realization was scary at first, while it was overwhelming to feel that shift in their relationship, to get to where they were today, it was something she would never take for granted.

"I love you Regina Mills. Thank you," Emma responded back gently. "Thank you for giving me the home I always dreamed of and never knew I would ever truly have."

Their eyes were wet with the emotion of the moment, as their lips found each other's, a kiss to express the deep gratitude they both had at finally being together, and at peace. Emma's hand on Regina's back pulled her down, pulling her body close, close, close as Regina shifted, straddling the blond as the kiss progressed. It was slow, it was luxurious, the kind of kiss lovers can share and appreciate on a soft couch on a Saturday afternoon. Light streamed into the room as Regina's hand found their way under Emma's shirt, rucking up the henley on her sides to access the pale skin.

Slowly the kiss ended, Regina's forehead pressed against Emma's, green eyes searching brown. "Delicious darling," Regina smiled sitting up, "now, back to work for you," she commanded, eyes sparkling as she lifted her body off Emma's, straightening her shirt. With a wink and kiss, she was back to the kitchen to fix lunch.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

"So Henry, what do mummies like listening to on Halloween," Emma asked as she was perched on top of a ladder, hanging ghosts from the big tree in front of their house.

"I have no idea Ma, what?" Henry replied, in that semi-annoyed way a teenage boy responds to his parent when he thinks they are slightly insane.

"Wrap music!" Emma replied, laughing so hard she almost knocked herself off the ladder that luckily Henry was responsibly anchoring to the ground.

"Ha ha, Ma. Funny."

"What, I'm hysterical!" she replied as she reached a little higher to put up the final ghost. The entire front yard was now decorated to the exact standards the brunette had carefully laid out for Henry and Emma from her position on the porch. There were cobwebs on the bushes, fake little spiders hanging throughout, ghosts in the trees and orange and purple lights adorning the walkway up to the house. On the front door was a skeleton, a fog machine hidden behind one of the pillars and spooky music ready to go from the window next to the front door.

Ever since Henry had been little, Regina went all out for the holidays. Even when the town was frozen in time, everything she did was the ensure felt Henry was happy and loved. And making the holidays special made her feel like a proper mother in the crazy world that she was raising her Little Prince. They never had celebrated anything like Halloween in the Enchanted Forest, but dressing up in extravagant costume was nothing new for the Queen.

She particularly enjoyed when Henry was little and she got to dress him up in whatever comic book character held his interest that year. Her favorite was when he dressed as Batman, and she dressed up as Wonder Woman to fight by his side. She had always had a little crush on Lynda Carter. She had a lot of time in the 28 years of the curse, and when Henry expressed a love of comics, Regina dove in with gusto, learning the difference between Thor's hammer and Captain America's shield. But Wonder Woman, she was something special.

So now that the curse was broken, their town now on the map of quaint little villages that dotted the coast of Maine, and new families had moved in, she was thrilled to go all out for Halloween once again.

"Hey Henry, why did the policeman ticket the ghost," Emma enquired as she began to clean up the supplies that dotted the front lawn.

"Why Ma?" Henry responded, rolling his eyes playfully.

"It didn't have a haunting license! Get it, a license to haunt instead of hunt?"

"Your hysterical Ma. Maybe you should go into stand up and leave all the Sherriffing to gramps." He grinned back at her. "So are we done here? I promised Violet I'd go watch her volleyball game this afternoon at school."

"Well, I think we better get the Queen's approval before you are released from your duties."

Knowing he could not leave until his mom did indeed give them her stamp of approval, Henry strode up the front steps, cracking open the door and yelling, loudly, for his mother to join them out front.

Teenagers, Emma thought, shaking her head with a smile on her face as she fit the lid back on the appropriately themed storage container. Of course Regina had color-coded storage containers for different holidays. Never in Emma's life had she encountered someone as meticulous and organized as Regina. Color-coded Tupperware…

Hearing those heels appear on the front porch caused Emma to quickly look up, brown eyes finding hers immediately as a smile spread across both women's faces.

"So Mom, what do you think? How did Ma and I do?" Henry called.

Regina took a moment to look carefully around the yard with a critical eye. She looked up into the tree, ran her fingers over the bushes as she sauntered over to their son, looking up at him when she reached his side. He was now taller than her and found herself keeping her heels on more often than not just to try to remain eye level with him for a little while longer.

"Wonderful Henry," she smiled and wrapped her slender arm around his waist, leaning into his side as she continued to look around the yard. He would always be her Little Prince, even if he was now taller than her. He allowed the hug, pulling his tiny mother into his side, grateful to see her happy, and to see blonde mother grinning like a fool at the two of them across the yard.

"Nice work Sherriff," Regina grinned, "and yes Henry, you have fulfilled your duties for the day. Enjoy your afternoon with Violet, but please be home for dinner. She is welcome to join us if you would like."

"Thanks Mom, you're the best," Henry grinned, leaning down to kiss her forehead. "I'm just gonna grab my stuff and be on my way."

Watching him walk up the steps, Regina called, "do you need a ride?"

"No, I'll walk, it's still nice outside. Thanks Mom."

Emma beamed at Henry as he shut the front door. "He has you wrapped around his finger, you know that, right?" Regina said, pulling Emma gently into her arms.

"Oh, like he doesn't own you too?" She smirked, loving the way Regina's body felt pressed against her. The soft curves that fit like lock and key to her own. The way Regina's lips seemed to always be drawn to her neck as she would nuzzle into the blonde. How she was just a little shorter than Emma, and Emma loved the way she could smell the sweet scent of her apple cinnamon shampoo when they were holding onto one another tightly.

It's was kinda ridiculously perfect.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

The inside of the house was tastefully decorated for fall when Emma had made her way back inside after returning the final Tupperware to the basement. It smelled like pumpkin pie and apples, a soft red throw adorned the couch and simple pumpkin candles now lined the mantle. A beautiful wreath of falls leaves with a huge pillar candle adorned the dining room table. It was the little touches that made this house a home and Emma was overcome by the feeling.

When she had moved in, just a few weeks prior, Regina insisted that they go shopping for some new things to decorate the house together. What that really meant was that Emma tag along while Regina shopped. But they had taken a day trip to Portland, just the two of them, and it meant more to Emma than she could ever really find the words to express. She did get to provide her two cents if she liked this piece of art, which new bedspread they wanted in the master, and Emma even picked out two new picture frames for the mantle.

For much of Emma's life, all she owned could fit into her bug. And the idea of buying things to decorate a place she lived was simply not important, as she never knew when she would be moving on. But now, she had a home, and a woman who encouraged her to make it her own. Within reason, of course, as it was Regina's house she was moving into. But she had a say. And that meant a lot.

Wandering into the kitchen to find that very woman, Emma stopped dead in her tracks. Regina was bent over, peering into the oven, her tight black slacks showing off her tight rear end, her ass holding a special place in Emma's heart. Gods her ass was a thing of beauty. Those curves, the way she moved, and when she bent over Emma could not help it. A thousand dirty thoughts ran through her mind all at once, most involving Regina bent over on their bed, Emma's hands, lips, tongue or toys all enjoying the firm behind in front of her.

Sensing Emma in the room, Regina slowly lifted her head over her shoulder and peered at Emma. "See something you like Sherriff?" Regina laughed, deep and throaty.

"Yes Madame Mayor, I do." She strode with purpose across the kitchen, her body colliding with Regina's as she leaned into the woman as she slowly closed the door of the oven, sneaking a quick peak at whatever masterpiece Regina has inside for dinner. "A roast? Smells delicious!" Emma exclaimed, "did you make that apple topping I love to go with it?" she asked excitedly, sounds more like a kid in a candy store than a grown woman who not moments before had a look of pure desire written across her face.

Standing up, Regina shifted, taking the blonde into her arms. "Yes dear, with the apple topping you love," she chuckled into Emma's mouth as she leaned up just a smidge to take Emma's plump, pink bottom lip into her mouth, sucking hard as Emma's eyes glazed over.

"How much time do you think we have before Henry is back, dear," Regina growled as her tongue swept into Emma's mouth, hard and fast.

"Enough," Emma answered with fierce determination. "Upstairs, now," she directed, pulling Regina with her as they ran from the kitchen.

* * *

TBC. Thoughts? Too much fluff? Thanks for reading, rec'ing, support, I really appreciate it!


	2. Chapter 2

Regina's mouth was wrapped firmly around Emma's breast, her tongue flicking and licking her nipple into a tight point, while her fingers were playing with Emma's clit. Lightly. Just enough drive Emma crazy.

Emma was a moaning mess beneath her, her body sweaty from the rounds of lovemaking they had already completed that morning. Regina could not get enough. Emma could not get enough. And now that they lived together, they could have each other whenever they desired. While their sex life prior to moving into together was quite active and passionate, now that they shared a home, it seemed like either one or both of them was consistently aroused and ready to go.

"Gina," Emma moaned, "stop teasing. I need you inside of me. Now, please…"

A smirk crossed Regina's mouth as her tongue continued on with its assault of Emma's breast. "Darling...," she moaned, her mouth full of Emma, her fingers increasing their pressure slowly between Emma's legs. How Emma was still so wet amazed Regina. Her lips were puffy from being pounded by Regina's fingers and sucked by Regina's mouth, incredibly tender to the touch, but Emma still wanted more. The feeling of Regina above her, her breasts pressed into Emma side and stomach, her brown hair wild and loose, one leg wrapped around Emma's to keep her spread, it was completely overwhelming in the absolute best possible way.

"Last one darling, do you want to come from my fingers, or from my mouth?"

"Both, babe, I need both," Emma croaked, her throat parched, as all the fluids in her body were currently occupying the space in the apex of her thighs.

Releasing Emma's nipple, chuckling to herself as she noticed the purple bruising she was leaving behind, she raised up on her knees as she shimmied down the bed to rest between two pale thighs.

Her eyes widen as she saw just hot wet, how swollen the blonde was for her, her arousal going up another ten notches as the smell of Emma came over her. Emma's head was thrown back in anticipation, her legs spread wide and hands gripping the sheets beneath her. But when Regina's tongue, stiff to a point, went straight at her clit, her head flew up, green eyes finding brown immediately.

The sight of Regina between her legs was overwhelming. Hair tousled, curls framing her face, damp from the workout they were giving each other so early in the morning. Regina was the first woman Emma had ever made love with. She had kissed woman over the years, had her fingers buried deep in one or two, but this, making love, Regina was her first. And the sight of her between her legs was the epitome of sexy.

Frankly, everything about Regina was sexy. But seeing her like this, Emma's knew she got to see a side of Regina Mills that belonged to only her.

"Yesssssssss," she groaned as Regina's mouth was relentless, licking, sucking, pushing through her folds. Regina's arms were around her thighs, her legs pushed back, her knees practically at her breasts as Regina's skilled mouth licked and sucked in all the right places. She ran her tongue from her clit all the way down to her puckered entrance in the back, a move that still caught her off guard. It felt so good. But so bad at the same time. She kinda loved it. Frankly she loved everything about the way Regina loved her.

Back at Emma's clit, Regina pulled the tight bud into her mouth as she used two fingers from her right hand to slowly enter Emma's warm, wet center. Her walls softly gripped Regina's fingers, both of them pausing for a moment to enjoy the connection.

Knowing Emma was close, Regina didn't waste time, going right for the spongy spot she knew Emma needed her to focus on. Pushing against it with shallow thrusts, her mouth attached to Emma's clit, she brought her lover to climax as Emma screamed into the pillow she grabbed at the last moment right before her release.

Slowing down her fingers, Regina withdrew and used her tongue to slowly lap up the rest of Emma's juices, licking her softly around her entrance and back up to give her clit one last peck before she climbed up Emma's body, loving the sheen of sweat that covered her pale skin. Moving the pillow away from her face, Regina found a sweaty, utterly content and smiling blonde looking back up at her.

Emma's cheeks were flush red, her hair matted to her forehead, a mass of blond curls spread out underneath her like angle. Her lips were chapped and dry, her eyes glazed over as Regina took a moment to appreciate the beauty that was all hers.

"Hi," Emma whispered, slowing coming to her senses. Using her left arm, she pulled Regina down into her side, where she fit perfectly against her. Regina's head was tucked into her neck, a leg throw over Emma's warm body, as her hand began tracing abstract patterns on Emma's taunt stomach that was still heaving from her powerful orgasm. Her mind was hazy, just taking a moment to enjoy the peace and stillness between them.

"You are so beautiful Emma. I love that I get to bring you such pleasure my darling."

Pulling Regina in closer, Emma used her free hand to pull Regina's chin up so she could look into her eyes. "I just, I never thought Regina, I never thought love could be like this. I feel so lucky that we finally came to the realization of what we mean to each other. I love you, so so much. And the icing on the cake is that you are the sexiest woman on the planet. It's a proven fact. And you are all mine."

Regina grinned up at her, eyes twinkling with delight. "I am all yours."

Snuggling back in, Emma's hand caressed up and down Regina's back, both of them almost falling back asleep, when the obnoxious sounds of Emma's alarm clock startled them both awake.

Muttering, Emma extracted herself from Regina to grab her phone and hit snooze. "Happy Halloween darling," Regina smiled as she stood from the bed, completely naked, all olive skin and pert breasts on display. Stretching her arms over her head, she sauntered off to the bathroom to start her day.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

While Emma spent most of her day running around town, ensuring the streetlights were all working, decorations were set around the town square, and of course helping Archie find Pongo once again, she was done for the day and excited to head home.

The plan was for her and Regina to get dressed in their costumes, and then head to the town square where everyone gathered to kick off trick-or-treating. Now that Regina was Mayor again, she would start the celebrations and games, and then they would head home to greet trick-or-treaters at their house.

Emma was beyond excited to answer the door at the mansion. When she was a little kid, she only went trick-or-treating a few times when she happened to be in good homes on Halloween. Holidays were never a favorite time of year for Emma, but this year was going to be different. She was going to start new traditions with her family. And she could not wait.

Regina had picked out the costumes for them both; it was to be a surprise for Emma.

When Emma had moved in, she had already long ago been given a key to the Mills residence. Way back when her and Regina were not even close friends yet, she had a key. But to commemorate her moving in, Regina had made Emma a new key that was bright shiny red, attached to a keychain of an apple. She smiled as she used her new key, carefully placing her boots in the closet and hung up her coat after she entered.

"Regina?" she bellowed, making her way to the kitchen. Not finding her there, she did a quick check of the study to also find it empty. She made her way upstairs, headed to their bedroom where once again, she found herself stopped in her tracks.

Regina was dressed in all black. Head to toe. Leather. Not an inch of her skin was showing, but the tight leather left nothing to the imagination, showing off her tight backside, her flat stomach and strong arms. She was bent over her vanity, drawing on dark smoky eyes to match her bright red lips.

"Gina…" Emma stuttered out, mouth hanging open.

Regina slowly turned, a mega-watt smile in place. "Em-ma," she drawled, making her way over to the blonde. "Hello dear, welcome home."

Emma could not think. She could barely speak. "Are you…cat woman Gina? Selina Kyle? Only the most sexy comic book character to ever exist?"

Regina nodded her head slowly. "You like?"

Emma nodded vigorously, her eyes tracking up and down Regina's lithe body, taking her all in. "So sexy..." Emma grinned, her eyes shining brightly. But then a frown quickly overtook her features, "Wait. You are too sexy! This better just be for me Regina because no one else gets to see you like this except me!"

Regina chuckled, "This look is just for you darling. I have a skirt that will go on over this to tame the look down. And the whip, that's for later, and also just for you. I do believe I make an excellent Cat Woman, however, do you agree?" The look on her face was just devious. Regina knew the kind of effect she had on Emma, and she loved it. For the fire time, she was using her sexuality to connect with the woman she loved, not using it to ensure people did exactly as she desired. It was liberating to be in a relationship where she felt sexy and loved being sexy for her partner.

Emma groaned. Loudly. Not exactly on purpose. Shaking her head, trying to clear all the naughty images penetrating her mind, she nodded. "Okay, so who am I?"

"Well my dear, since this is our first Halloween together officially as a couple, I wanted to dress you as something really special to me."

Regina took her hand and led her over to the loveseat in their room. "You see, when Henry was little…" she began. Regina proceeded to tell Emma about Henry's love for Batman was he was really young, and how Batman comics, Batman figures and long discussions about Batman vs. whomever the villain of the day were had at the Mills household. She told her about one of her favorite Halloweens and how she dressed up as Wonder Woman and how much she loved Wonder Woman. "And so, you are going to be Wonder Woman this year. She is part of the Justice League, which let's be honest, fits you to a T darling."

She rose up from her seat to retrieve the costume. Regina had gone all out, red tights (to keep her warm), the blue skirt with white stars, a modest corset with the WW logo, headband, wristbands and even the red and white boots.

Emma was positively vibrating with excitement. This was hands down the best costume she had ever worn, and could not contain herself. "I love it! I love it, love it, love it, thank you Reg!" She picked up the smaller woman, swinging her around for a moment, lost in her excitement for the holiday.

She began to strip immediately, Regina helping her into the costume. "You look very fierce darling," Regina whispered once Emma was ready, giving her a sweet peck on her lips. The smile simply refused to leave Emma's face, it was a moment that Regina would never forget. Making her smile like that was something she planned to do for the rest of their lives.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

Once they made it back to their house, their first official trick-or-treater was by far the cutest they would get all night.

"Trick-o-tweet Em-my," she heard as she opened the door. The fog machine was rolling, spooky kids sounds softly humming in the background. The foyer was dark, lite with more orange and purple lights to set a spooky scene.

"Bean!" Emma bellowed, picking up her little brother and peppering his little face with kisses. Putting him back down, she kneeled down to get closer to her little brother. Regina was watching the scene from behind, leaning on the doorway to the living room. "Now, who are you this year little one?" Emma inquired. "You look awfully fierce. You have a bow-and-arrow, wow, and leather boots and…" Emma grinned, looking up at her mom, wearing the same outfit. "Are you a bandit, Bean? Just like our mom?"

Neal nodded his head vigorously, smiling so bright, his little four-year-old face full of delight. "Well you two make quite the pair." Emma stood, hugging her mother and then father, dressed as, of course, Prince Charming.

"How quaint, had I know, I would have dressed Emma and I as the Princess and the Queen to complete the family portrait," Regina said dryly from her perch.

"Regina!" Snow whined in her high-pitched voice, "you stop! Emma, I asked Regina if she would do just that, but she flat out refused, telling me she had something special planned for you two." Her mother held her at arms length, taking a good look at her Wonder Woman attire with a grin.

Neal, on the other hand, upon noticing Regina's presence, made a beeline for Regina, who was his favorite person on the planet, much to the amusement of everyone in the family. "GINA!" He squealed as he ran straight for her. Regina bent, ready to take the hit, picking up the energetic four-year-old and swinging him on her hip. "Gina you look very pretty tonight," he grinned, immediately playing with her hair, as he loved to do.

"Why thank you Neal, and you look quite dashing yourself," she grinned. The two of them got on like peanut-butter-and-jelly. When Regina was around, everyone else was a second-class citizen, even Henry, whom he adored like a big brother.

Regina made off with Neal into the kitchen, she had a special Halloween treat she had made just for him, when Henry and Violet appeared at the door.

"Hey Gramps, hi Gran," Henry greeted the family, giving his grandparents hugs as he made his way into the house. He and Violet were too old to dress up, but had spent some time in the town square watching the festivities before they made their way to Mifflin Street.

As Henry was shaking his head and laughing at his mother's costume, a group of kids approached the front door yelling trick-or-treat. Looking around for the candy to hand out, Henry was flabbergasted when all he saw was a basket of apples. "Apples?! Really Ma? You are letting her make us 'that house' – the one with only healthy options? Come on, no!"

"Henry Daniel Mills," came from behind him, where his mom and Neal had just exited the kitchen. "Of course we are handing out apples. Honey crisp no less. That are natures candy, sweeter than any artificial sugars these children should ingest."

"We _are_ that house," Henry muttered, looking at his Ma in awe. He could not believe Emma, his mother who practically survived on hot chocolate and bear claws if it were not for his other mother constantly feeding her, would be okay with this.

Now with an audience of practically their entire family, Emma had to sneak into the hall closet with a sheepish grin. She had hoped to use her persuasive skills on Regina when she had her alone, but she got distracted by Cat Woman and didn't have a chance to broach the topic of candy with her brunette.

"So ummm," Emma drawled, puppy-dog eyes out in full, a sheepish grin on her face, "I know that apples are natures candy, and we absolutely should make sure we give the kids healthy treats, but I was hoping we could also give these out as well?"

The basket was filled to the brim with chocolate and artificial colors and sweeteners of the worst kind. But she knew the kids would love it. And when Emma gave her that look, she basically lost the ability to say no.

"Miss Swan," came out more harshly than intended, as Regina made her way over to her blond, a firm look on her face as she leaned right into Emma's personal space, "remember that whip I have lying upstairs on our bed? Expect to be punished, thoroughly, tonight, for this little stunt," Regina whispered in her ear, ensuring no one around them could hear.

"Yes mam," she grinned, and handed Violet and Henry the basket, her cheeks bright red at the thought.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

After practically the entire town had made it's way on and off the Swan Mills front porch, all the candy was gone, as were the apples, as Regina and Emma finally had a moment to sit together on the sofa. Henry was walking Violet home, after they surprisingly hung out with Henry's moms for the entire evening. An unexpected and happy turn of events for the two women.

"I really like Violet, don't you?" asked Emma. "Of course dear, she is practically part of the family at this point. I can't believe that they have been dating for almost three years now. She is good for Henry, very sweet and polite. I quite enjoy having her around. And no Emma, I do not want to talk about what might happen when they graduate from high school," Regina's voice turned soft.

Henry growing up was not a topic that either enjoyed thinking about too much, but Regina was dead set against discussing it unless she absolutely had too. Time was precious with her family and she was not ready to let Henry go off to college, to be an adult. While she knew it would be happening, soon, she simply did not want to think about it until they had to discuss college options for him, which would not be until at least another year.

"Let's just work on him getting his drivers license next, okay babe?" Emma laughed, nodding her head in agreement. "Robin was quite cute, don't you think?"

"I will never stop being thankful that Mulan has taken on my crazy sister and tamed her wicked ways. Robyn was quite precious dressed as a legendary warrior. I can't believe Mulan even got Zelena to dress up as a warrior so the three of them would match."

"It was something, that's for sure. Zelena is whipped," Emma giggled, shaking her head, her blonde curls swaying softly around her shoulders. "Thankfully Mulan is a good woman, she let's Zelena be her crazy self, while also helps to reign her in when needed. They are a good match."

Emma pulled out her phone to scroll through some of the photos they had taken that evening. Zelena was scowling in most of them, but she did capture a few where the love she had for Mulan and their daughter had come through the lens quite clearly.

"It was a great night, yeah?" Emma asked, pulled Regina in closer as they watched the flames dance away in the fireplace.

"Oh yes darling, it was wonderful. Did you enjoy yourself?"

Emma nodded emphatically. "Now, do you think we could head upstairs and you could show me exactly how that whip of your works?"

"Oh yes dear…someone needs to be punished."

* * *

 **TBC**. **Happy Halloween Swen!** Would love to hear your thoughts.


	3. Chapter 3

**CHAPTER 3**

 **A/N -** Special thanks to LadyFun!

* * *

Early November was passing quickly in the newly anointed Swam Mills household. Emma was getting settled in, a new routine beginning to take shape as they adjusted to three people living full time in the house.

Sunday nights became family dinner nights around the time Emma and Regina went public with their relationship and of course continued after she officially moved in. Regina and Snow were undeniably close now. Sometimes they got along so well it made Emma feel like a bit of an outsider to their relationship. But they had a long history and the fact that her mother and partner had repaired their relationship was something she knew was a blessing, not a curse.

So Sunday nights the family headed over to 108 where Regina cooked, Snow brought the appetizers and Mulan and Zelena supplied the desserts. Sometimes Ruby and Dorothy would come as well, but the tentative truce between Zelena and Dorothy was not always smooth.

The nights where everyone was present made for a packed house. Mulan and Ruby had a thing once, a long time in the past, which also bothered Zelena to no end. It was a complicated little web of relationships and friendships between the families for sure. And when Granny joined, the dinners were nuts.

It happened to be just that type of Sunday night when all the family was present: Regina, Emma, Henry, Violet, Snow, David, Neal, Mulan, Zelena, Robin, Ruby, Dorothy and Granny were all packed into the mansion.

Henry, Violet and Snow were busy entertaining Neal and Robin on the floor in the living room while Regina and Granny were flitting about in the kitchen with Dorothy. Regina kept trying to insist that Granny take the night off for once, but the gruff older woman would have none of it.

You see, Regina and Granny had a past that few knew of. When Regina was very young, Granny had been a cook in the Mills household and had a soft spot for the precocious little brunette. She often would sneak her treats when her mother was not around, and Regina would run off to the kitchen were Granny would tell her stories of the world that lay outside of their home. Granny would spin tales for the Regina, and Regina would giggle and snack, happy for a few moments in her rather stressful, methodical and regimented childhood. It was from Granny that Regina would learn the love of cooking at a very young age.

But when Cora had discovered Regina had been spending time in the kitchens with Granny she fired the woman immediately, banishing her from their house forever. But Regina's love for Granny had always remained, and that's why when the curse was enacted, she ensured that Granny and Ruby remain together as a small token of her love and affection for the crotchety woman.

Now Regina loved to have Granny in the kitchen with her, it felt comfortable and reminded her of a time when she had moments of great happiness before everything changed for her. So Granny and Regina chatted away as they prepared the meal, Dorothy enjoying the peace of the kitchen, staying far away from Zelena, who would never be caught cooking, and helping when she was allowed.

Ruby and Emma were setting the table as they chatted about how Emma was feeling now that she had lived here for a little over a month. While Snow and Ruby were always close, Emma and Ruby had also formed a tight friendship.

"So how is it living with the Mayor these days Emma? I mean, if nothing else, she sure is easy on the eyes."

"Yes Rubes, she is," Emma replied dryly. Ruby was never shy in her affection for Regina. Well, looking at Regina at least. Dorothy was her true love, but she was in a relationship, not dead. And Regina was fun to look at.

"It's actually been pretty wonderful. Other than the fact that I have to kill all the bugs. I mean, every single one. There was this infinitesimally small spider in the bathroom last night, and you would have thought a tarantula had invaded the sink the way Regina yelled for me. I sprinted into the bathroom, tripped on a pair of my own shoes on the way, nearly broke my arm and got a black eye thinking the world was ending. And it was a spider I could barely see it was so small."

As Ruby's eye grew wide, a grin spread across her face as Emma emphatically recalled the events of the prior evening. A sudden smack, hard, on Emma's ass, caught her off guard as she was fixing the last napkin.

"Miss Swan!" Regina drawled, her right hand gripping Emma's ass, her chin resting on Emma's shoulder as she pressed her body tightly against the blonde. Ruby, watching from the other side of the table, could barely keep it together as she watched Emma's facial expressions evolve from amusement to pain to terror over the course of 2 seconds.

"Ruby, I will have you know that your dear friend Emma made an agreement with me when we decided to live together. You see," Regina whispered, leaning closer to Ruby, pushing Emma further over the table with her body, "I keep her, well, quite satisfied, if you know what I mean," throwing Ruby a wink, "and she kills all the bugs. We did not negotiate the size of the bugs that she would deal with. The agreement was _all_. So if she," Regina smacked Emma's ass playfully as she spoke, "would like to change the terms of our agreement, she should let me know. Right now."

"No!" Emma squealed, turning quickly in Regina's arms, throwing puppy dogs eyes to the brunette with a pouty lip no less. "No changes," she smiled softy.

"Alright then," Regina smiled, leaning in to press her lips against the pale pinks ones that she seemed to never get enough of. "You kill the bugs. No questions, no comments. The bug killer, bug remover – that's you Miss Swan."

"Ummmm, I guess, I'll just…" Ruby trailed off as she escaped from the room, still laughing.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

Of course with that many people being accommodated in one dining room, one might think that everyone would just grab whatever seat was open to eat. But no, of course it was not that easy for this rowdy group.

Dorothy and Zelena could not be anywhere near each other. Snow always insisted on sitting right next to Charming, and while Violet was pretty much part of the family at this point, she did feel better if she was sitting right next to Henry, or Regina at least.

So the jockeying for position started while everyone filled up their plates that lined the island in the kitchen. Regina spared no expense when it came to Sunday night dinners.

After being separated from herself when she extracted the Evil Queen, Regina learned a lot about herself. And when Emma had finally found a way to bring her back together, the feeling of coming whole again taught her that all facets of herself, made her, well, her. Being split into two helped her realize that she could not simply get rid of the bad parts of herself. It was not that easy. She had to come to terms with all the things that she had done, all of the people that she had hurt – and accept that she could find it in herself who she truly wanted to be.

She fought with herself for months following the reintegration. Memories of actions from her time apart causing her mind to spin in ways that no one could understand. It was during that time that Emma had and her had grown much closer.

For whatever reason, Emma had never blamed her for her childhood, for being separated from her family. Emma heard her tell her the stories of how she came to lose faith in life and in herself. How she put her trust in the wrong people time and time again. And how when she was young, she had dreams of a large family with many children, of riding horses and feeling free, and how that was all stripped of her without choice. And that lack of choice, feeling like everything was pre-destined for you was something Emma could relate to more than anyone else.

They spent many nights on Regina's back porch, or in her office in front of a roaring fire telling the hard truths about their lives. Their dreams and their hopes for the future. Spilling regrets and hopes and dreams over glasses of cider, or bottles of wine. They would curl up under blankets, one of both of them falling asleep as they let go of their pasts and spoke truths they had never spoken before.

They found safety in each others eyes. They found acceptance in the small connection of hands. They found the ability to keep speaking, even when it became hard, in the comfortable silence that grew between the two of them.

They found a peace with one another that they both had been searching for but never had found until they opened themselves up and let the other in. It was not romantic in any way. In fact, Emma was still with that lying pirate when she helped Regina become reintegrated.

But what Emma slowly came to realize, the more time she spent with Regina, was that the relationship they had developed between the two of them was based on honesty and trust. About giving and receiving. About making the ultimate sacrifices for the other not to gain anything, but only to give.

So now, their Sunday family dinners held a special place in all of their hearts. Because it represented togetherness and family and acceptance and love. Of fighting hard to get to that place and being so grateful to have made it to the other side.

So while the food was plentiful, and of course, delicious, it was really about the people that filled the room that was the most important part of their dinners.

And why, at the end of the day, Regina always managed to ensure she was sitting next to Emma when they ate. Because now that she had her, she always seemed to feel better when she was close.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

"Whoever would have thought Potatoes Au Gratin could be classified as a weapon of mass destruction?" Snow hissed quietly to her true love.

He nodded in understanding, looking up with his Charming blue eyes, and grimacing at the sniping taking place at the large and boisterous dinner table. Both Charming and Snow were a bit flabbergasted at the fragile detente between Dorothy and Zelena coming apart at the seams.

It was a bit like watching a horrible car crash, but being utterly powerless to stop it.

True to his nature, David whispered back, "Do you think we should do something, Snow?"

"Shhh! Hush it!" hissed Regina, taking a liberal swig of her Merlot, "I want to hear this – it's starting to get good Prince Farming!"

"Honey, it done _been_ good, for awhile now!" chuckled Granny conspiratorially, "…A _long_ while. Y'know, it's like puttin' chestnuts in the oven without slicing 'em. Pretty soon the heat and pressure builds up, and then WHAM!" Granny grinned. "Chestnut guts all over your oven wall!"

Regina gave her an appreciative snicker, and nodded.

Snow's presumed pacifist statement she was rearing up to deliver was silenced, as Zelena started up again, eyeing Dorothy dishing up a generous helping of the aforementioned Potatoes.

"Tut tut, Ms. Gale!" cautioned Zelena, with a malevolent grin,"I'd save some of those, if I were you."

"Why's that? I believe everyone had some who wanted…" Zelena cut her off. "Ah, yes, well…once on the lips, forever on the hips. Or so I'm told."

Dorothy narrowed her eyes. "What are you implying?" The former wicked witch merely shrugged indifferently, "I'm just saying that you're no longer living on your pig farm in Idaho—"

"Kansas," Mulan supplied, quietly.

"Oh. Right," she looked at Dorothy dismissively. "Yes. Well then, as I was saying…you're not on your pig farm in Missouri, dear, and you should probably realize you can't walk around in your overalls and waders here."

"Zelena," warned Ruby. "Yes, wolfy?" Ruby merely growled.

"Look," Zelena grinned, "I'm doing you a favor, my dear wolf. I mean, really. People may think they need to pack on enough meat on their bones to survive those Midwestern tornadoes, dust storms, and….er, the, um, locust and whatnot, but your girlfriend should understand the social mores of the East coast!" She looked at Red emphatically, "it is not necessary to use your girlfriend as a personal floatation device during those tornados of dust that afflict the pig farms of Iowa."

"Kansas," Snow, David and Mulan supplied.

"Pish!" dismissed Zelena, "whatever." She munched emphatically on a bare piece of celery for emphasis.

"Did she just conjure that?" Violet whispered to Henry. "I didn't see any celery stalks out, earlier." Henry nodded, "probably."

Dorothy for her part gave a death glare to both Zelena and her green stalk of celery that seemed to crunch louder with every bite.

Snow leaned over to Emma, "do something."

"Like what," hissed Emma in response, "I hardly think junior high sniping rises to the level of 'Savior intervention', Mom."

"Totally," agreed Henry. "This is like, only Defcon-2, or something."

"Def-what?" Snow asked, looking confused.

Before she got her answer, Dorothy's voice rang out, slicing through the uncomfortable silence like a knife through buttah.

"It's funny, you know, how bony-ass women do more to bring down their own female comrades than men! Why do chauvinistic men who need to marginalize women even exist? I mean, really…we have our fellow sisters to do that demeaning _for_ them, apparently."

"Technically, dear, in this case, it's 'our fellow half-sisters,'" Regina snarked.

 _"I meant_ the sisterhood of women, Regina," Dorothy said, stating the obvious. "I mean, why do we do that? Men don't marginalize each other!"

"We don't?" grinned David, with a wink. "I should have read the memo."

Dorothy shook her head, and shuttled back to her seat, with both the second helping of Potatoes au Gratin and her doting werewolf, in hand. It wasn't until after she sat, and began eating that a quiet voice broke the silence.

"Well put, Ms. Gale," Mulan said, stoically, "it is said, that awareness is the greatest agent for change of the inner spirit."

Dorothy looked up, mid-bite. "Uh, thank you?" she said, after a beat.

The girl from Kansas and the Wicked Witch of the West gave each other a blank look, then both turned simultaneously to regard the Chinese warrior, sitting quietly, picking at her dinner with elegant chopsticks. Ping received two long blank looks, while both were obviously mulling over her cryptic statement.

Ruby grinned, then laughed outright, "love it when you go all Zen-like, Ping."

Mulan merely cast her eyes downward, her face expressionless as she gave a single curt nod of acknowledgment. The blank look on Zelena's face, however, quickly dissipated as she cast furious emerald eyes in Ruby's direction, rendering a glare worthy of Cora Mills.

Ruby threw up her hands in mock surrender.

"Woah, greenie! I'm just sayin'…" Ruby leaned forward, chuckling, as she asked conspiratorially, "You can't tell me you don't find it hilarious when you'll be all…oh, I don't know…fighting a robot army of drones, or some such, getting your ass kicked, sweating your butt off, and you'll look over and she's so calm and collected and pops off something like, ' _The beginner has many routes, the expert has few_ ,' and you're like, WTF? "

Emma nearly snorted her milk up her nose as she openly guffawed at that. The Sheriff offered Mulan an apologetic look. "Sorry, but that sounded just like you! Rubes has got your number!"

Mulan, expression completely neutral, interjected. "No, Sheriff Swan. She **had** my number. Past tense," Mulan cocked her head thoughtfully. "Had, Sheriff. For as the crow flies, the past is already gone, and the future is not here, yet." Mulan went back to quietly eating her meal, again.

The table was silent, staring at Mulan, with varied levels of confusion.

Mulan finally looked back up, acknowledging the confused looks, letting out a polite sigh. "Joke," the deputy explained.

The room was silent.

 _"Whaaaa_?" Emma's eyes widened, as she finally broke the quiet. "Holy shi-, crap!" She burst out laughing, changing her expression after Regina raised one perfectly sculpted brow in her direction. "Mulan just cracked… a joke!"

"Miss Swan!" huffed Regina under her breathe, as Ruby slapped Dorothy's backside, letting a resounding crack! snap into the air. Ruby, hand remaining firmly ensconced on Dorothy's rear, just grinned at Zelena.

Zelena rolled her eyes, mumbling, "there really is no happy ending for the wicked, is there?"

"Look," Ruby said, almost sounding serious, "can't we all appreciate the female form comes in different sizes and shapes? And they can all be beautiful, you know."

Henry and David exchanged an uncomfortable look. They had bonded, somewhat, over the fact the women of their clan all decided to simultaneously swing to the "lesbionic" end of the pendulum, with oddly uniform timing.

The poor Y chromosomes at the table had no time to adjust, really; they had made a pact at the _last_ dinner if the gay ladies started talking about menstrual cycles and speculation of 'are Rizzoli and Isles a real thing' again, David and Henry would have to go drink a beer and scratch their nuts on the porch, on sheer principal alone.

 _("Eeew." Regina commented, when informed of the plan by Henry, previously. "You and the Shepard best be prepared to go through my power washer on the porch, then, before you return to civilized company, dear.")_

At present, however, the former Mayor of Storybrooke's thoughts were far from hosing down the lone male's nether regions.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

At this dinner (which would be later referred to as simple "Potatoes" when recounting the details to others), thoughts of power washers were far from the former Queen's mind as she was preoccupied with the concern some expensive bit of her furniture would bite the dust at any moment.

Pandemonium had broken out.

Ruby had convinced the dinner guests, Granny included, to participate in some mutant version of the Electric Slide, with Regina and Emma's living room becoming an impromptu dance floor. This was a partially drunken idea which came to pass after Ruby and Emma pulled up Sir-Mix-A-Lot's "Baby Got Back" on Regina's expensive IPod dock to make a point to the growling Zelena.

Zelena merely watched everyone making fools of themselves, her dear Mulan included.

 _("I am deeply sorry, my cherry blossom," Mulan had apologized as she stood to join the dance floor. 'It's just….well. Please understand, Zelena, that if you Give me a sister, I can't resist her …Red beans and rice didn't miss her," she offered sheepishly. Zelena laughed, delighted. She couldn't resist smiling back at her beloved Ping, and nodded her understanding. "I get it. You got_ _ **sprung."**_ _She gave her a crooked grin. "Go enjoy yourself. But return back to me." "Always." Mulan nodded, seriously.)_

Zelena ignored the peasants, amusing herself with reading the latest reviews from Wicked on Broadway on her phone. It seemed as though Emma and the Inappropriate Wolf had found the repeat button and they were on their third round of dancing. Zelena huffed. It wasn't long before she felt someone slide into the chair next to her, her younger sister giving her a sincere smile.

"Would you like to come dance with me?"

"With you?" Zelena huffed. "Why would I want to do that?"

Regina arched an imperious eyebrow, her voice hitting a lower register than normal, "because I'm the Evil Queen."

"Please," Zelena huffed, "sorry, dear. I don't dance with amateur's."

"Amateur?" Regina said, offended, "I'll show you amateur! That is, if you're not intimidated, of course."

Zelena offered her sister a playful sneer. "Oh, my dear misguided sister…the Queen may be Evil, but **I'm** wicked. And wicked always wins."

Regina held out a hand to pull her sister out of her chair.

"I thought the saying was 'there's no rest for the wicked.'"

"Well, that too," Zelena hummed in appreciation, "let's do this- show those peasants how it's done."

Regina grinned, and asked her older sister if she wanted to leave her phone, to which Zelena confided in a naughty tone,

"No way! Bringing it with. I just figured out the wide lens feature on my camera…can't wait to take a few action photos of our dear Ms. Gale," she broke out in hysterical giggles, "although, finding a shop that has long enough rolls of photo paper to develop the damn thing might be the future challenge."

Regina looked at her sister incredulously, then openly laughed shaking her head. "Z…"

* * *

 **TBC - Thanks for reading!**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: You are loved. You are important. Let us all hold each other in kindness and support. We will get through this. Keep fighting for what is right. And fight for love. Hugs to each of you.**

* * *

As it had turned out, when Storybrooke appeared on the map and strangers began to move into the quaint Maine town, new developments began to pop up closer to Storybrooke than ever before.

A few years back, a beautiful 18-hole golf course with stunning views and a sophisticated Clubhouse was developed right along the coast, not far from Storybrooke. It was here, Emma and Mulan found themselves on the range with a bunch of high school students on a warmer than usual November Saturday.

Mulan was the physical education teacher at Storybrooke High. While she had worked at the Sherriff's department for a short while when she first arrived in Storybrooke and had decided to stay in town, she realized that her love of sport and the outdoors was greater than her desire to work in local law enforcement. And so, she became the PE teacher at the high school, and also coached the girls softball team, the boys fencing team and started up a golf team when the new course had opened up.

Her calm demeanor and consistent even keel made her especially wonderful with oft-times emotional and frenetic high school students.

As her friendship with Emma developed, and her relationship with Zelena progressed, she found the four of them spending more and more time together. So, in order to give the sisters some alone time, Mulan convinced Emma to learn how to play golf and help her as assistant coach of the HS golf team.

Emma could not believe she had agreed to this, but Regina was in full support. She was thrilled Emma and Mulan became friends, as it only helped in the development and healing of her relationship with her sister. Additionally, she loved to see Emma in those collared tank tops and tight khaki shorts. Anytime she got a glimpse of those arms made Regina just a little giddy that they were all hers.

"So students," Mulan spoke stoically to the nine teenagers at the range. "What is the most important thing to remember before you all being your warm up?"

"Keep your head down and your eye on the ball," they all repeated back to Mulan in perfect unison.

"Exactly. Sheriff Swan will now lead us with some stretches before we begin."

Emma smiled and gave a little wave, before raising her hands high in the air, grasping her hands to execute the first stretch. "Alright team, let's start by focusing on our torso and shoulders." As the team followed along with Emma, she helped loosen them up to have a safer and more effective practice. Their next stretch required they use a club, putting it between her arms, behind her neck to stretch their shoulders, while rotating and mimicking the movements of the swing.

After a good 20 minutes, the team was ready to begin their practice.

As Mulan began walking up and down between the students, checking their form, reminding them they were not trying to 'end the balls life through violence,' Emma had jogged up to the clubhouse to get a drink for her and Mulan.

It was there she found a slightly tipsy brunette and red head chuckling together by the windows. "Nice form Swan," came a sexy drawl, "how else do you put those arms to use these days?"

"Hello Zelena," Emma chuckled, as she bent to give a sweet kiss to those sultry red lips of girlfriend. "I didn't expect to see you two here today?"

"We wanted to surprise you darling," Regina responded as she grabbed Emma's hand, slowly tracing her knuckles with her thumb as she spoke, a mischievous smirk on her face. "We thought the four of us could have lunch at the Clubhouse before we headed back to Storybrooke. Since Mulan drove you both, Zelena and I drove together in the Mercedes so you and I could then head home together after lunch."

"Ahhh, lunch I see? That's very sweet of you. But somehow I think it was the idea of Bloody Mary's that drew you here more than Mulan and myself."

"WHY I NEVER!" Zelena feigned a shocked expression, clutching her hands to her chest in mock outrage, "My dear sister, your blonde bit of arm candy here is suggesting that these absolute to-die-for Bloody's are more important than the love of a good woman!"

"Well Z, they do make their tomato juice base from scratch and have the most complete bar of toppings anywhere in Maine. They have 12 different types of vodka, topping galore including bacon, oysters and 3 kinds of horseradish, also made from scratch. But of course this absolute feast is nothing compared to our beautiful better halves," Regina replied seriously.

"Sure, sure. I totally believe you Reg," Emma chuckled. "Keep drinking and we will meet you in here afterward. But just remember, babe, I get to drive the Merc home if you keep going as you are."

"DAMN IT," Regina muttered under her breath as she took a long drink from her second Bloody. "Worth it," she winked.

Their hands still intertwined, Emma gave Regina as slight tug, pulling her up to wrap her arms around her for a hug. "Love you," she whispered as she nuzzled into her soft brown hair.

"I love you too darling," Regina responded quietly as Zelena barked, "This isn't the Queen's dungeon you two!"

With a quick peck and a glare at Zelena, Regina sat as Emma made a grab for her drink, taking a generous sip. "Delicious, but not as delicious as you," she laughed at Zelena's rather consistent eye roll.

Emma winked and was off to get Mulan and herself something a little more athletic appropriate.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

Emma sat at the lunch table with an ice pack held securely to her left bicep by Regina, who was practically sitting on top of Emma a look of deep concern etched on her face.

"Mulan, again, what exactly happened?" Regina barked in her direction, while using her free hand to rub soothing circles on Emma's back.

"Emma was standing behind one of our new freshman team members. She is such a quiet, sweet girl. I recruited her because she needed something to get her out of her shell, and showed some basic abilities when I first took her to the course…" Mulan began with an even tone.

"Yes! And how did this dimwit manage to fly a small missal into the arm of Miss Swan?" Regina scowled.

Emma laughed, shaking her body, then grimaced in pain all the span of a few moments. She took a deep breath, "Babe," she began softly, "I'm okay. And it's not Mulan's fault. It's not Charlotte's fault either love," she continued, trying to calm her furious lover.

Regina shook her head, brown eyes finding green as she took a deep breath. "I just hate to see you hurting. I, I want to take you home immediately Emma."

Zelena, cackling from the other side of the table, took a drink from her recently refreshed Bloody Mary, ignoring the pointed glare from her sister. Regina turned, softening her gaze as she looked back at Mulan and gave a small nod.

"So Charlotte was nervous and as she took a particularly hard swing, she missed the ball, and then as her club returned to the starting position, she hit the ball, sending it flying behind her, right into Sherriff Swan's arm. I am terribly sorry Emma, I feel terrible."

"Mulan, it's fine. I'm fine," Emma plastered a small smile on her face. "I mean, it hurts, but I'm pretty sure I'll live to see another day."

"Someone get this blonde a drink!" Zelena bellowed.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

As Emma would clearly no longer be driving them home, Regina ate a hearty meal accompanied by several glasses of water. Emma, however, enjoyed a few Bloody Mary's while her brunette monitored her arm and held the ice bag up while she ate. It was kind of adorable to see the Evil Queen be reduced to a fretting wife the way she hovered over Emma. It was entirely unclear who was in more pain at that point, Emma, who took the hit, or Regina, who had worked herself up into a tizzy with concern over the rather startlingly large bruise Emma was now sporting.

"So is it really true that Kentucky and Red have bought a new house on the outskirts of town?" Zelena inquired as the four women finished their lunch.

"Kansas," Mulan and Emma simultaneously corrected.

"I believe that's the case, although I have not spoken to either one of them about it recently. It seems that Ruby could not take being that far away from Granny any longer."

"Is she going to work at the diner again?"

"I'm not certain, although I believe she is overseeing the expansion and opening of the new location, so not as a waitress any longer," Regina responded.

"Well they say you can take the girl out of Nebraska…" Zelena sneered.

"But you can't take the Kansas out of the girl," Emma supplied.

"Unfortunately. Back in the same town as Texas," she grimaced.

"I still feel there is so much to this story that I do not entirely understand," Regina interjected, ignoring yet about barb about Dorothy from her sister. "When are we doing our NYC weekend to see Wicked? An entire three hours of you green with envy, it's just too perfect to pass up."

"From what I understand, no one will ever be able to replace Idina Menzel and Kristen Chenoweth in their performances, but it is still sold out almost nightly. Although I just can't get over the implication that I would become friends with Glinda. GLINDA! It's absolutely asinine," Zelena muttered. "Morons."

"Well I for one am looking forward to an entire weekend in NY. I can't wait to take you to some of my favorite places, and show you some of the spots Henry and I loved during our year there," Emma spoke as she looked at Regina.

"And Elphaba? What kind of name is Elphaba? It's worse than Rumpelstiltskin. And I never thought I'd encounter a name more heinous than that…" Zelena continued on, not bothered by the fact that the rest of the table had shifted to a new topic.

"Speaking of your time in New York Emma, I must say Regina," Mulan began speaking. Slowly, deliberately, she continued, "during the year Zelena cursed the realm once again, I heard what you did for Emma and Henry. I heard that you saved their lives, and gave Emma the opportunity to turn back time in a sense," she paused and made sure to connect with Regina's brown eyes. "You gave her and Henry a new life together and a future together. What you did was entirely self-less Regina, and quite profound. It was when I heard this story that I knew you had changed. Your love of your son and of Emma, your family, and finding a way to love yourself, it's beautiful. There is an old Chinese proverb Regina, 'Better to light a candle than to curse the darkness.' What you did for Emma and Henry proved to me without a shadow of a doubt that you had moved beyond the darkness."

Completely lost in Mulan's quiet strength, Regina had fresh tears trailing down her face. Even Zelena had stopped making cracks and listened to the woman she loved speak beautifully about her sister. She had completely taken the table by surprise when she had interjected. Her words came from her heart as she spoke of seeing the profound change in Regina that was promoted by love, by kindness, trust and acceptance.

"I did not mean to make you cry Regina," Mulan continued on, reaching her hand across the corner of the table to gently place it on Regina's shoulder. "I just realize I had never spoken to you of hearing what you had done for them. And felt it appropriate for you to know many of us recognized the power and grace in your actions."

Regina took a deep breath, and turned to look at Emma for a moment, whose eyes were glassy, a soft smile across her lips as she beamed at the woman she loved. It was that moment of connection, and love, that helped Regina compose herself before she could turn back to Mulan.

"I…"she began, and then took another few shallow breaths, "thank you Mulan. Your kindness astounds me. I am so grateful to have you in my life, and in my sisters life…I just…" she stopped.

Regina was too overcome to continue, having truly only heard words like this, words of recognition and acceptance from Emma, Henry and Snow. To see others noticing, it was a powerful feeling.

Noticing Regina needed a moment to just be, Emma interjected. "Mulan, how did you become so patient, so kind and so strong?" Emma genuinely inquired.

Mulan gave another soft smile, "well, we have another saying where I am from. 'If you are patient in one moment of anger, you will escape a hundred days of sorrow.' I realize it is very difficult to live with this principal when our emotions can get the best of us, but I try to do remind myself of this every day when I wake up. I try to take a moment to center myself before the day begins. It's taught me a lot, to see before I speak and listen with all of my senses."

"Zelena, you are a very lucky woman," Emma sent a pointed glance toward the redhead.

"Don't I know it…"

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

"Emma, darling," Regina called from upstairs. She had left Emma downstairs on the couch, curled up with a blanket, reading the latest chapter of the book series she was currently obsessed with. It had practically taken over Emma's existence she loved it so much. She could still hear Emma's giggles as she read, realizing she must be in a moment of lightness in between all the angst Emma had described to her after finding her one night at her house in tears on the couch.

They were not living together at that point, and Regina had been working late so Emma had headed to the mansion to have dinner with Henry. He was upstairs doing homework before bed when Regina had arrived home to find Emma practically sobbing, crying about the main character going blind and how she wanted to wrap Anglasha up in bubble wrap or some nonsense. Regina held onto her as she cried, telling Regina about the world of Imps and Queens, and how Emma had felt a connection with the Anglasha character, who also grew up in the foster system and also had magic.

It made Regina smile as Emma's laughter filtered up the stairs of their home. "Yes?" Emma called back.

"Are you almost done with your chapter? Can you come upstairs?"

Regina heard Emma rustling downstairs as smiled to herself knowing the evening she had planned for them. Henry was out on a date with Violet and some of their other friends, so the mansion was theirs for the night.

As Emma walked into the bedroom, she took a moment to pause and inhaled deeply. "Mmmmm, smells so good in here babe!" It smelled like mint and eucalyptus with a hint of green apple she discerned as she turned to make her way into the bathroom.

Regina stood leaning against the doorway to their en suite, wearing only her favorite grey silk robe and a simple smile on her lips. She was backlight from the bathroom, light and shadows dancing behind her.

"How is your arm, my darling?"

"It hurts," Emma shrugged, "but feeling okay. Thank you for taking such good care of me Gina."

"Its my job, and one that I love doing. Now come," she beckoned, "I have a little treat for you." She turned and sashayed into the bathroom. Emma grinned and followed closely behind.

The bathroom was dark except for dozens of candles lite around the space. Soft classical music was playing in the background, and the tub was filled with bubbles and that enticing scent Emma had noticed when walking in.

"Regina Mills, the former Evil Queen, the Queen of my heart," Emma smirked, "who knew she was really just a romantic at heart!" Regina raised one eyebrow as Emma spoke. "Oh, who am I kidding, I have know for the longest time Regina that everything you do, you do because of love. Because of how much, how deeply you feel. Thank you babe."

Regina shook her head. "Miss Swan, you are the only person in this universe that can get away with calling me babe. But even then, it's questionable…now, let's get you underdressed."

She made her way over to the blond, her eyes never leaving the green ones trained on her. She started with Emma's jeans, popping the button and slowly lowering the zipper. She bent at the waist, and placed a delicate kiss on Emma's pale stomach before shimmering Emma halfway out of her tight jeans. She helped Emma to sit on the edge of the tub, lifting one leg as she revealed the long, smooth, pale leg. With one leg free, she delicately placed it back on the ground, caressing the inside of Emma's knee as she placed a kiss on the top of her thigh.

She then lifted Emma's other leg and relived it of its tight jean, caressing and kissing it in the same manner. She helped Emma stand again, slowly lifting her tank top so she could shimmy her good arm out, then maneuvered the top over her head and down her injured arm so she did not have to lift it.

With Emma now down to her bra and panties, Regina leaned in and kissed her lips softly. "Beautiful," she smiled at the blond.

She turned Emma around to face the tub, and unhooked her white lacy bra, placing a kiss to the nape of neck, and several more down her spine as she ran her hands up and down the newly exposed skin of Emma's back and sides.

She took in soft curves, the places where she delicately caressed Emma where she knew she loved her touch. She took her time, enjoying the feeling of the woman in front of her. The hard muscles, the fine blonde hair, the smooth skin. Emma shivered from the focused love and attention she was receiving from Regina, her head peacefully lulling to the side as her body relaxed to almost a meditative state from the steady indulgent touches.

Removing her bra straps one by one, taking care to only move her hurt arm minimally, she placed the bra on the counter and went back to quietly, gently touching Emma's bare shoulders. She placed a kiss on her exposed neck, taking a moment to suck and lick the strained muscles. Placing another series of wet, open mouthed kisses to Emma's back, she made her way down to her tight rear end, grinning at the matching white, lacy boy short underwear Emma was sporting. Hooking her fingers on the side, she slowly dragged them down, exposing Emma's ass to the air. And to her eyes. She placed another kiss right on her ass, biting it playfully to get a little giggle out of Emma.

Removing her underwear completely, she turned the blond back around to see the serene smile on her face. "Darling, would you like to get in?"

"Oh yes," Emma practically moaned. "But please tell me you are joining me?"

Regina simply nodded with a smile, opening her robe to expose her naked body, turning to hang it on the hook behind the door.

Regina stepped in first, all olive skin and easy curves, tight brown nipples hard from the contrast of cool air on her body and warm water on her legs. She held her hand out to Emma, beckoning her to join her as she sat, placing her back against the tub, her legs open wide in the deep and large bath so Emma could fit easily between.

Emma slide in right between Regina's legs, her hands immediately finding the trim legs surrounding her, loving the feeling of Regina's arms instantly surrounding her body, using her hands to softly pour warm water on her shoulders.

"Thank you love, this is…it's so perfect. Why have we never done this before? This tub is so huge, it fits us both perfectly."

"I have to keep some surprises up my sleeve for you darling," Regina chuckled. "And after getting hit today, I just wanted to give you some time to relax and heal."

A moment later Regina continued, "I'm really proud of you Emma. I love that you are helping with the kids at school, and growing your relationship with Mulan. The kids get to see a different side of their Sherriff and I think it's good for them to be involved, and feel supported."

"It's fun…I really enjoy it, even though I've never played golf before in my life. It's nice to learn something new – that has nothing to do with defeating mystical and magical beings and being tossed from realm to realm. It feels…I don't want to even say it, but normal, and easy, and I love that. It's been a really long time since things felt normal, whatever that means."

"Opening the town up to the outside world was a very good decision the town made together. I think it's helped a lot of people find a new sort of peace and happy existence."

"I was really proud of everyone for coming together to make that decision. Even my parents, who I thought would have done anything to go back to the Enchanted Forest if given the option."

Regina chuckled, "don't I know it. The town is really thriving, so much new growth and new life. I feel really fulfilled leading it again, and seeing the town I love, and the people I have grown to love, really thriving."

"I do admit, it was an entirely too shocking for me, a city kid, when I first arrived in Storybrooke. It was way to quiet, for obvious reasons. But now it's a small town with a vibrant feel and I absolutely love it."

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

The two women sat quietly, enjoying the peace, the quiet music, and the ability to freely touch one another in the luxurious tub. While they had experienced so many wonderful moments when they first started dating, the fact that they were now living together just made it feel different. Made it feel more.

They were a unit. A team. They shared a son. They shared a home. It was more profound a feeling than Emma had expected to feel.

She had lived with Hook for a short while when they came back from the Underworld. But even then everything felt forced. It ended shortly after that, her realization of the stark differences between a trusting, healthy relationship and the one she was in with Hook had become more pronounced every day, leading her to make the decision to choose herself, put her needs first and to wait for the right relationship, not just be in one because that love and affection was what she craved.

Regina had seen right through her relationship with Hook, telling her subtly over time that he was not right for her. Not in a way to bring them together, but because Regina had cared for her as an individual. The nights they had spent talking, Emma began to share more about the relationship, and came to realize how unhealthy it was. You should trust your person more than anything or anyone. You should turn to them instinctually. You should never question if the reason you got together was because of his persistent, not your desire. Regina was unbelievably restrained during their talks, letting Emma come to her own conclusions, processing at the pace she needed.

Seeing where they were now, committed, in the love and a true partnership in every sense of the word, Emma was especially grateful that Regina had never pressured her like Hook. Regina only supported her, and made her feel worthy. The relationships were night and day, and Emma could proudly say she was with Regina because they both felt like they belonged together, one had not relentlessly pursued the other until they gave in.

"Penny for your thoughts darling?"

"I was just thinking about how far we have come. And how unbelieving happy you make me Regina. Nothing, ever, in my life has felt as right as this does. Us, with Henry. Living together. Me killing all the bugs, you making my belly incredibly happy every meal," she chuckled as Regina playfully splashed her with water.

"You do know Regina, that what Mulan said earlier was true. She is not the only one who respects you so very much and recognizes how far you have come."

"It was…" she paused searching for the right way to say this, "unexpected. While I definitely know people have a better sense of who I am now, to hear it said so – eloquently – by someone who I have grown to care for and respect. It meant a great deal. Learning to accept and love myself was not easy Emma. But with you by my side, and Snow, and of course Henry, I just…" she paused as she gripped Emma tighter, placing a kiss on her temple, their bodies sliding together in the warm water, "thank you Emma."

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

Still in the bath, after refilling it with a new batch of hot water and ridiculously expensive scents that only Regina would have, the woman had no desire to leave the peace, solitude and connection they felt in the tub.

"I heard you chuckling earlier when you were reading. I thought that story was only about angst?"

"Oh yes," Emma nodded, "lots of angst. But also it's really funny at times. The banter between the Queen and Anglasha is so clever and devious. It reminds me of us, actually, especially when I was first in town and the only way we could express our feelings was to fight each other at every turn. But oh gods, the chapter I was reading today, it had this line, where the Queen was torturing Anglasha about all the different types of kisses they shared. And then the Queen leans into her, whispering into her ear, 'do you want to get dirty Anglasha?' and she responds, 'filthy, my Queen.' It was so hot Gina, they are so sexy, I may have gotten a little aroused reading it."

Regina chuckled. "Aroused, huh? From this Imp story about the lesbian couple…hmmm…" Shifting to the side, Regina pulled her knee up to still support Emma's back, as she essentially shifted the blond to having Emma's back between her legs, to now having Emma's side between her legs.

"Are you still aroused Emma?" she whispered into her ear as her left hand began softly caressing the back of Emma's neck, while her right hand found Emma's foot. Slowly she began to drag a single finger up Emma's leg, alternating between swirling it to scratching her nail, drawing different sensations on Emma's skin.

Regina had discovered the back of Emma's knee's were especially sensitive to her touch. When she had Emma on her stomach, she loved to use her tongue, her teeth, her mouth to drive Emma crazy by sucking, biting and softly torturing this erogenous zone on the blonde. When she reached her knee tonight, she ever so lightly spent a few moments touching her softly, causing Emma to shiver with reaction, her eyes glued to Regina's hand under the water.

As she finally reached her destination, the wet folds between Emma's legs, she softly moaned into Emma's ear, "Oh darling, you are aroused, aren't you?"

"You have been softly touching me for over an hour in this bath babe. My body is pressed against your naked skin. I feel your nipples pressed into my back. I feel the coarse hair between your legs pressing against me when you move. Of course I'm aroused."

Emma's eyes were now shut as Regina softly traced her finger through Emma's cunt, using the abundance of arousal to flick her clit, lightly, teasing the small bud. Emma's mouth immediately went to Regina's neck, sucking on the olive skin as her body reacted to the pleasure coming straight from Regina's fingers.

One of Emma's hand found a breast, pulling and rolling Regina's nipple to a hard point as she relentlessly marked her neck, her body rolling and shaking as Regina's fingers steadily worked her clit, her folds, teasing her opening as she brought her closer and closer to orgasm.

They continued on this was for several long minutes, Regina loving the feeling of Emma's reactions to her touch, Emma overcome, and ready to release.

Finally, Regina thrust inside of Emma with two fingers, her thumb finding Emma's clit as she quickly brought her to orgasm, Emma clinging to the brunette as her body felt release from the tips of her toes, the ends of her fingers, straight to her very sensitive nipples.

Slowly removing her fingers, Regina pulled Emma closer, her legs wrapping around the blonde as they both clung to one another in the warm water.

* * *

 **TBC.** Thank you for the support and kind words. :)

If you are wondering about the story Emma is reading, it is my favorite SwanQueen epic tale of love spanning centuries called Of Imps and Queens. Hi hi hi to the OIAQ squad.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** **More fluff with a side of love below. Hope it makes you smile.**

* * *

On most mornings, Emma would lay in bed after Regina rose to get ready for the day. She was not exactly a morning person, so her desire to run out of bed and straight into the shower was not significant.

She loved waking up with Regina, usually in some tangle of limbs with some variation of clothing having been tossed to the floor during the middle of the night. Emma seemed to always be cold. And Regina, well, she seemed to always run hot. Her body was warm, warm, warm and Emma loved to cling to her to warm up when they got into bed at night. But at some point during the night, Regina would get so hot from Emma's constant cuddles, she would rip off some variety of clothing and sheets to cool down.

So when she sauntered out of bed in the morning, Emma simply enjoyed watching her make her way to the bathroom in some state of undress. She'd lie in bed and slowly wake up, loving the incredibly soft bed, the ridiculously silken sheets and the smell of Regina she left behind.

But this morning was different than most mornings in the Swan Mills household. Regina had a meeting out of town later that day, and instead of going into work before she left, she had planned on working from her home office before she had to depart. So, she was in no rush to get out of bed, and they both were happy for the extra time together that morning.

Emma did not have to rush into the station either, so she wanted to surprise her love with breakfast in bed. Laying on her side as she slowly woke up, she reached across the small distance between the two of them and lightly caressed the brunettes exposed stomach, watching her muscles quiver with her touch. Regina's eyes were not yet open, but as she felt Emma's gentle touch, she instinctually turned to into the blonde.

As Regina began to turn, Emma used her momentum to pull her lover toward her softly, closing the small distance.

Taking a moment to just feel her, their bodies now flush against one another; Emma took a deep breath and smiled as the sleepy brunette began to stir. Emma still had on one of the tank tops she liked to sleep in; Regina was naked after ripping off her silk cami at some point during the night and Emma was pleased at the expanse of olive skin that was on display just for her.

She could not believe how they ended up here, in this moment. In various states of undress, sharing a home, a child, a life together. She got to see a side of Regina that no one else had the privilege of witnessing. The soft, gentle side of a woman who had a hard life, who fought in many battles, but came out on the other side never taking a moment of this new-found happiness for granted.

Regina's silky hair surrounded her face, her lips quirked ever so gently into a smile. Her perfect breasts pressed against Emma as Emma's hand found the small of Regina's back, running smooth circles over her skin as they slowly woke up.

"Morning love," Emma smiled as brown eyes slowly made an appearance.

"Hi darling," Regina replied in a sleepy haze, her voice deep and husky, pulling herself further into Emma, burying her head in Emma's neck. They held onto each other for some time, slowly waking, enjoying the peace and feeling that accompanied the start of the day.

Eventually Emma began to feel soft kisses beginning to pepper her throat. Wet, soft little kisses from Regina's oh so **soft** lips, accompanied by little nips and sucks. A moan escaped from Emma's lips without thought as Regina continued to kiss her softly. She made her way up to Emma's jaw, and pulled herself up eye-to-eye with her lover, giving a soft smile when their eyes met.

Regina leaned her forehead against the blonde, speaking softly, "you feel so good pressed up against me. I will never tire of waking up wrapped around you."

"Ditto."

Their lips met in another series of soft kisses. It was the kind of kiss you relax into, mostly lips slowly sliding against one another. It was a kiss you got lost in the gentle pull and push of love and affection, no rush, no hurry, no dominance. Just gentle caresses and small exchanges of air.

Emma eventually pulled away with a peck, "I'd like to cook you breakfast in bed Madame Mayor, before you head off to your afternoon meetings."

"Mmmm, I can be persuaded into that," the brunette grinned. As Emma slid out of bed, pulling on a pair of sweatpants, Regina grabbed her phone and began reading her emails.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

Downstairs Emma turned on her favorite pop mix from the iPod they shared that was always left in the kitchen. She grabbed a variety of ingredients out of the refrigerator as she began to bob around to Tegan and Sara's 'Closer', a favorite of hers.

After about 20 minutes, with one cup of coffee already consumed and Henry out of the door for school, she put the final touches on the tray she had prepared for their breakfast in bed. Two fresh cups of coffee accompanied one of her favorite breakfasts.

While Emma was certainly not a good cook by any means, there were a few meals she loved and knew how to make. Some she had picked up during her year in NYC, as Regina had gifted her with the ability to make some of Henry's favorite meals without second thought.

She carefully carried the loaded tray up the stairs and made her way into their bedroom to find Regina wearing her ridiculously sexy thick black framed glasses, reading through some papers for her afternoon meeting.

Emma stopped in her tracks. Regina had not bothered to put any clothes on, her bare chest still exposed as the rest of her body was covered by their duvet. Her dark nipples were hard with the cool air, but she did not seem bothered. She was focused on the document she was reading, as she unconsciously ran her hand through her brown hair, which looked perfect but still tousled from their night of sleep.

She was simply **stunning**.

"Hi," Emma said, breaking the silence. Regina immediately looked up with an upturn of the corners of her mouth seeing the blonde. "Darling, it smells absolutely delicious." Regina gathered her papers and deposited them on her nightstand as she pulled back the covers on Emma's side of the bed, taking the tray so Emma could slide in.

"What do we have here," she grinned, taking her mug of coffee, inhaling a deep breath before she took her first sip.

"I can't believe I've never made this for you before. It's actually one of my favorite breakfasts that I became addicted too when Henry and I lived in NYC for a year. I have not made it that many times since we came back, I guess because I never really felt settled again until now. That year with Henry made me feel like a real family with a real home, and now that we all live together again, that feeling, that wonderful sense of calm and peace, I have it again. I was out grabbing a few things at the store earlier this week and suddenly had a huge desire to make this for you. I hope you like it."

Regina had listened to her blond speak, feeling so grateful to have given Emma that sense of peace when she had left with Henry and had been able to provide that for her yet again.

"It's avocado toast. It's nothing special, but I just love it." Regina picked up a piece, taking care to smell it first, and then took a bite. Emma watched carefully, really hoping Regina liked the breakfast. She watched Regina chew, closing her eyes as she let the taste spread across her tongue.

"Delicious, its delicious Emma!" she smiled genuinely. "So it's whole wheat toast with avocado, and is that lemon juice I taste?"

Emma nodded happily. "And some red pepper flakes as well?"

"Yup! With a fried egg on top. I know it's nothing complicated like you make, but it's healthy, which I thought you would appreciate, and has good protein and well, it took me by surprise to like it so much since you know bear claws are my usual go-to breakfast."

"I love it Emma, thank you for making us breakfast," Regina responded happily. But then, a more serious expression crossed her face, her voice dropping an octave as she spoke again. "But Emma, I think this means that you are holding back on me. What else can you cook? Should we start sharing cooking duties for the family?" With a raised eyebrow, the look Regina sent Emma's way had her nervous for a moment.

"Regina!" Emma held up her hands in innocence. "Are you crazy! I can make three dishes. You have lost your mind! You are like a master chef. No way am I getting in the way of your delicious meals. No way, no how," she vigorously shook her head.

Regina bit the inside of her cheek hard to stop from bursting out laughing at the absolutely terrified look on Emma's face.

"I just wanted…" Emma stammered on, "to make you something special. This is no way means that you should stop cooking for us. I mean, Henry first of all would never forgive me. And I would not forgive me. You can't be serious babe! Pleaseeeeeee…." she pleaded.

With her eyebrow raised, Regina continued to stare down the blonde, her mouth continuing to hold the round 'o' shape of shock. Finally should could not hold it in any longer and let out a deep, throaty, sexy as all get out laugh. Emma narrowed her eyes, as Regina reached out and put her hand on the blonde's arm.

"Calm down darling, I promise, I will never not cook for you. Both of you. It brings me great happiness that you and Henry love what I make for you both. I was just giving you a hard time. But…I do have to admit it is a nice change of pace for you to make me something every so often. You surprised me this morning, and I love it."

"Whew," Emma replied, wiping her brow and visibly exhaling in relief. "That I can do," she said happily, enjoying the teasing and smiles that easily flowed between the women.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

When Regina made it home later that evening, she found a note from Emma on the counter in the kitchen, as well as a mess of mail they must have received that day. Regina had come home later than she expected and was exhausted from the long day she spent in meetings outside of Storybrooke. There was a salad waiting for her in the refrigerator as Emma had accompanied Henry to go watch Violet's volleyball game at the school this evening after she had spent the afternoon at the driving range with the golf team.

Upon opening the refrigerator Regina found her salad, along with an open container of milk, no cap in sight and the usual order and system of hers in complete disarray.

While Regina could absolutely not be happier now that Emma was officially living with them, certain things about going from a household of two to three was certainly an **adjustment**. Regina was neat. Some might consider her to be obsessively tidy and organized. She knew that. She recognized this in herself. She knew that Henry knew what was expected of him because he had grown up in her house where rules and expectations were clearly set. She was not unreasonable, but a tidy home helped put her at peace. And she appreciated knowing where everything was whenever she needed something.

But adding one blonde Sherriff to the household had certainly added a layer of chaos she was not entirely prepared for. She knew Emma was messy. She had seen it in the loft when she had lived with Snow. She had seen it in the house she lived in before moving in with Regina and Henry. She was not exactly dirty, thankfully, but she was not neat and tidy by any means.

Regina had found herself biting her tongue since Emma had moved in as she wanted to ensure Emma felt completely welcome and at home in their home. But her frustration levels were growing as Emma's things became strewn around the house. A jacket thrown over a chair here, paperwork strewn about over there, phone chargers randomly placed around the house, moved from the logical locations Regina has strategically placed them. Instead of fighting, she merely picked things up, moving them back to where they belonged, hoping Emma would get the hint.

But the past weekend had proved to be one of their first bigger arguments since they moved in together. Of course they had argued many times before over the course of their antagonistic friendship, their friendship and even when they went from friends to lovers. They both had strong opinions and could be incredibly hard headed at times. But they were very lucky in the fact that they would argue, both be upset, but then put it to rest and move on.

But it was not always that respectful. At the beginning, Emma had the sincere urge to run when they fought. And she had. She felt like their relationship would crack irreparably and had the desire to remove herself from the situation would further infuriate Regina, who wanted to argue, get it all out on the table and then move on. Regina, not surprisingly, was always ready to stay and fight, but was also terrified that fighting would somehow be detrimental to the relationship they were building.

They had worked through both of their fears to recognize that arguing was normal and did not in anyway mean they wanted to no longer be in a relationship with one another. They worked hard to both not overreact, to talk through their feelings and realize that neither of them were likely doing anything to the other to deliberately hurt one another. So many fights started over a miscommunication or honest mistake. And if they could talk through their challenges they would both be happier and more fulfilled. It took work but they were doing their best.

But this past weekend, Regina had lost it for this exact reason. Emma was like a tornado through their home, and suddenly because the house was less tidy then before, Henry had also become more relaxed in cleaning up after himself. It was like he had the excuse he finally needed and suddenly his mess started to filter out from his bedroom to the kitchen, the living room and the foyer.

She had not intended for the fight to happen, but tripped over Emma's shoes in the middle of the hallway was the last straw. They argued, they yelled and Emma had left because she had an afternoon shift at the station. Regina was furious and had paced the house, gathering all of Emma's things and deposited them on the floor next to her side of the bed, which still angered Regina since it just meant their bedroom now had a pile of things in it. They had talked when Emma had returned home, Emma promising to do better, while Regina had tried to explain why she was so upset.

So tonight, trying to calm herself after she was already on-edge from her meetings and long drive, was proving difficult. She sat down at the counter to eat her meal before heading upstairs to change out of her suit.

But it was upstairs she found their bedroom in disarray. It was apparent by the state of their room, the floor and their bathroom Emma must have rushed in from her day at work, and then at the driving range, as a variety of dirty clothes were on the floor, two drawers of the dresser were half open and a variety of her products where strewn on the counter of the bathroom. As well as two wet towels handing askew on the towel rack. Was it really that hard to just neatly hang a towel when it was done being used? Really?!

Her irritation skyrocketed as she undressed, hanging up her suit back in it's rightful place in the closet, placing her lingerie into the hamper and her Louboutin's back in the open space reserved just for them on the shelf in the closet.

Taking a deep breath, she walked naked into the bathroom and hastily shoved Emma's mess into her drawers, taking a moment to clear the surface. She got into a hot shower, using her favorite mint and eucalyptus scent to try to calm her nerves.

They needed to come to some sort of resolution that would make them both happy. She just didn't know what it would be.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

When Emma and Henry had finally come in, chatting happily about S.H. winning the game and how well Violet played, they found the downstairs dark. "Mom must be in bed already," Henry noted, hanging his coat up in the closet, kicking off his shoes into the bottom, no longer worried about carefully aligning them like he was use too, as his other mother kicked her boots in as well.

"Its pretty late kid, why don't you get ready for bed and we will see you in the morning. Love you Henry."

"Love you too Ma," Henry smiled as he nodded and headed upstairs. Emma went into the kitchen to get a glass of water for herself before heading upstairs as well. She had such a wonderful night with Henry, and really enjoyed watching his excitement for his girlfriend as she played. She appreciated so much that she had the opportunity to be a part of Henry's life like she was now, and while she had initially felt entitled to him when she had learned Regina was the former Evil Queen, she knew that it was Regina that truly allowed her to form a relationship with her son. It was just one of the reasons she grew to love and respect Regina. She put Henry first and supported their relationship.

Finishing her water, she left the cup on the counter and headed upstairs. What she found when she got upstairs, however, was not what she had expected.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

Regina had tried to calm down. She had taken a shower. She had cleaned up the house. She had paced around their room trying to come up with a solution. In a snit she uncharacteristically flung herself on their bed. She really wanted to be in a different frame of mind when Emma returned home because she did not want to fight about this anymore.

One tried and true way to relieve some of her stress was to take matters into her own hands. Literally. So laying on top of her bed in her silk cami, she removed her matching panties and slowly began to traipse her hands down her body. Gently. Slowly. She tweaked her nipples for a moment, closing her eyes to try to simply feel the sensations she was brining herself. Moving downward, she slowly caressed her stomach, her hipbones, lightly running her fingers over her sensitive skin. She felt her neatly trimmed hair between her thighs, smiling to herself as she recalled some lazy days laying around with Emma naked in their bed, where Emma's hands would wander to play lightly with the hair between her legs as they spoke. She appreciated so very much how comfortable they were now with one another. Finally reaching her destination, she began to softly play with her clit in hopes of finding the release she was seeking.

She imagined the way Emma looked at her sometimes. Across a room, across a table, in a meeting...wherever they were, in a sea of people, Emma's green eyes would always find her. She would blow her a kiss, sneak her a shy smile, or give her a wink, always taking a moment to check in with her before they went back to the group or conversation they were involved in. It made Regina a little calmer thinking about just how connected they had become. She loved the way Emma had a smile that was reserved just for her.

She thought about the first time they had made love. They had taken the progression of their relationship slowly. It was new for both of them when they had come to realize they had feelings for one another. They were nervous about what it meant for their friendship. How it would impact Henry. The relationship Regina had worked so hard to build with Snow. How would the town react to the Savior falling in love with the Evil Queen?

So when they had finally made love for the first time, they were both so nervous. Uncharacteristically so, they would later laugh. They both had wanted it to be so special for the other. They wanted to give the other woman something they both had never truly found before. And while their sex life was now far more adventurous than it was at the beginning, she would never forget the moment she first saw Emma truly naked and exposed to her. She was so beautiful, all pale skin and pink nipples and soft hands and the hair of an angel. Those green eyes so nervous, but filled with so much love at the same time. When she first tasted Emma, truly tasted her, she was instantly addicted. How she could bring Emma such pleasure, while experiencing such pleasure herself was mind-blowing.

So as she remembered that first night, her first taste, the way Emma looked when she made her come just from her mouth, Regina's hand began to work faster, as she buried two fingers deep within herself, eyes closed, biting her lip as she was lost in the sensation.

And that is when Emma had walked into their room. She was not trying to be quite, but she thought there was a chance that Regina might have been asleep knowing she must have had a long, stressful day.

So to walk in and see Regina like that, moaning softly to herself as one hand worked herself into a frenzy, the other gripping her breast over to silk shirt, Emma was dumbfounded.

She assumed Regina masturbated. She knew she had, primarily when they were not living together yet and had yet to take their relationship to that level, she would find herself aroused and frustrated and needing to take the edge off before she lost it on some unsuspecting person. But they had never talked about it. And she had definitely never walked in on Regina doing it.

Should she softly close the door and walk out? Should she make a lot of noise before she walked back in and give Regina time to stop? Should she slowly make her way to the bed and finish her off? Or just stand there and watch? That would be creepy though, Emma thought to herself. Right? That would be creepy to just watch without Regina knowing. But for fucks sake this was **hot**. She had no idea it would be so unbelievably arousing to watch Regina pleasure herself. But also, hey, that was her job now! They lived together. And she was more than willing to ensure Regina had a **fan-fucking-tastic orgasm** whenever she wanted one. Yeah! That was her job.

Emma nodded to herself silently as she made her way over to the bed, her green eyes wide with lust.

"Regina," she spoke softly to the brunette who was clearly lost in the moment. "Regina," she said again.

Brown eyes flew open wide as Regina cried, "Emma!"

Regina's hand stilled, her mouth open as her eyes locked on the blondes. "Oh my god," she whispered.

"Don't stop of my account," Emma groaned, as she shucked off her sweater and tank top and began unbuttoning her jeans. "But you only get one for yourself before it's my turn."

Regina's face registered two conflicting emotions, lust and embarrassment. Emma had just caught her in the act, which frankly, was horrifying to the mayor. But watching Emma's reaction as she was too stunned to move, the blonde was slowly undressing herself as her eyes maintained contact with the brunettes. Suddenly pale skin was on display, as Emma was suddenly down to her purple bra and grey boy shorts. While not exactly what some would describe as sexy, on Emma, it was perfect.

"So, are you going to finish or can I have the honors?" Emma asked as she made her way to the end of the bed. Regina, still stunned into silence, so unlike herself, did not reply, but just simply watched her blonde as she crawled up the bed and placed herself between Regina's legs, still popped up, bent at the knee's, her hand remaining still, buried in her pussy.

" **Good**. **Mine** ," she growled.

She kissed the exposed part of Regina's hand, and began to slowly pull it from inside her. She kissed Regina's fingers, taking a moment to taste, before she gently placed in on the bed. And without reservation, she went straight for Regina's clit, using the flat of her tongue to roll the bead in her mouth.

Regina's entire body tensed as Emma descended on her, and then every nerve ending, every muscle, every fiber of her being was concentrated on the incredible feeling of Emma's mouth covering her sex.

It didn't take long. Regina was close when Emma had walked in on her, and once she was calm enough to focus again after being interrupted by her blonde, Regina's body was back to hovering on the precipice of release. Focusing only on the woman she loved, who appeared to be enjoying herself just as much as Regina as she loved every inch of her between her things, Regina finally found the release she was so desperately seeking.

She felt her orgasm began in her toes, quickly flying up her body as Emma's fingers continued to scissor inside her. The feeling exploded it's way to her breasts, her nipples tight points of release themselves, as Regina's eyes flew open, her head flung back as Emma continued on, her tongue pulling every last feeling out of Regina's body.

When she finally relaxed with a gasp and groan, Emma made her way up Regina's body, lying on top of the smaller woman, burying her face into Regina's neck as they both fought to catch their breath.

"Darling…" Regina began as her arms instinctually wrapped themselves around Emma, caressing her sides. As Emma began to lightly nip at her neck, Regina's last conscious thought was that they could talk in the morning, as her legs shifted to wrap around Emma, pulling her body further into the brunettes.

* * *

TBC. Thank you for the support and kind words.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N. Happy Thanksgiving weekend to those who celebrate. Hope you enjoy the little Swan Mills holiday weekend below.**

* * *

When the town of Storybrooke was first formed, traditions of the world they now resided in had made its way into their daily lives, just like driving cars and using ovens. But during those 28 years of stasis, the meaning behind events held little emotion.

Today, the idea of celebrating Thanksgiving, together, with family and friends, was something the old and new residents of Storybrooke enjoyed together.

As Regina woke up, wrapped around her ever chilly, always sexy blonde, she grinned into the body she was nestled against. "Happy Thanksgiving darling," she purred into Emma's neck, feeling the blonde was also coming into consciousness.

"Happy Thanksgiving babe," Emma husked back, pulling Regina's naked form more tightly against her body. "Are you really okay with hosting so many people at the house today?"

Regina nodded the affirmative, her head still tucked in the space between the blonde's shoulder and neck. "I am thankful Emma, and grateful, to be in the place we are today. It feels pretty wonderful, actually, to be able to share the day with all our friends and family. With you. With Henry. The three of us together."

Emma pulled away, flipping the brunette onto her back in one swift motion. Straddling Regina's stomach, Emma leaned down, taking a moment to appreciate the woman beneath her, before placing her hands delicately on the brunette's cheeks. "Regina Mills, before the day begins, before people begin to descend on our house, I just want you to know that I am so thankful to be spending this holiday with you and our son. And I am so thankful we have gotten to this place, together." Brown eyes met green. "I love you," she whispered, and leaned down to connect her lips to those of the woman she love.

"I love you too Emma. All of me, loves all of you."

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

"Emma Swan!" Regina bellowed from her perch in the kitchen. "Where is the pepperoni? Please tell me you went to the store yesterday to get those last few items we needed?"

Emma was busy setting the dining room table, while Henry was in the front yard cleaning up the leaves to ensure the walkways were clear for when the guests arrived. Music was playing low in the kitchen, and the Swan Mills women were expecting the arrival of Snow, Zelena and Mulan at any moment.

"I did go to the store," and exasperated blonde appeared in the entryway to the kitchen. "But I'm not entirely sure that pepperoni was on the list…"

"Of course it was on the list! You can't make the stuffing without it!" Regina was frustrated, and was trying very hard not to snap, but feeding a group of 20 people added a layer of insanity to an already anxiety-inducing meal.

The morning had been quite peaceful as the three members of the household enjoyed a quiet breakfast together. Emma had gone for a quick run while Regina set about getting the kitchen in order to start meal preparations. Henry was helping her organize the ingredients after he brought in the extra table and chairs from the garage.

This might have been the largest gathering Regina had ever had at 108 Mifflin that included a sit down meal and while she was, well, honored that everyone was spending the holiday together at their home, her perfectionist tendencies were causing a modicum of stress that all members of the household were experiencing in full force by this point in the early afternoon.

"Guests will be arriving in two hours Emma. Two! I need to get the stuffing into the oven so I can move onto the appetizers."

"Gina. Babe. I'm sorry," Emma tried. "I'll run out now, I promise I'll be back in a jiff with your pepperoni," Emma shouted, already heading to the closet to grab her coat and shove on her boots.

As she flung open the door, she could hear Regina shouting from the kitchen, "Emma Swan, you be back in this house within 20 minutes or there will be hell to pay!" Chuckling, she ran out, practically flinging herself into Zelena who was about to knock on the door.

"Change your mind blondie? Running out on my sister already," she sneered.

"Hello Zelena. Fair warning – the stress levels are high in there. Put on your big girl pants before you head in. I've got strict instructions to be back in 20," Emma laughed, as she yelled and ran to the bug at the same time. "Now 19, bye!" the car door slammed as Emma practically peeled out of their driveway, narrowly missing Mulan's truck parked out front.

"Hello little sista!" Zelena called out as she hung her coat in the closet after she placed the dozen bottles of wine she was carting onto the entry table. She knew when to annoy her sister and when not to push. Heeding Emma's warning, she headed into the kitchen to survey the damage.

While no one would ever walk into Regina's kitchen and see a mess, the amount of bowls and tools strew about was the messiest Zelena had ever seen the space. Walking over to the woman immersed with mashing an enormous bowl of potatoes, she leaned in to peck her sister on the cheek.

"What did that little blonde of yours forget that had her on a mad dash to that yellow monstrosity?"

"The pepperoni. Which is critical to the stuffing. I knew I should have run to the store myself yesterday, but I had too many meetings about that new development on the outskirts of town and was simply exhausted by the time I made it home." Regina's spine was straight, her back rigid, stress emanating from the beautiful brunette. She looked more like the mayor of Storybrooke during the curse than the woman she was today.

"Regina, it will be fine. Emma will be back in no time with the pepperoni," Zelena responded kindly, seeing the lines of stress across her sisters face and not wanting to add to already tense situation. "And if she does not, it will be fine. I can call Mulan to see if she can find some when she and Robyn head over."

Zelena continued to tut around the kitchen, cleaning and tidying as she went while Regina fixed the mashed potatoes, the only sounds being the thump of the masher and Regina's sighs of frustration.

"This has to be perfect," Regina snapped.

"Regina, you are a very talented in the kitchen. We all always love your food. It will be delicious."

"Not just the food!" Regina snapped again, taking a deep breath when she was done, her hands stopping the thump thump thump into the potatoes. "Everything. It all has to be perfect," she sighed quietly.

"Regina. It won't be perfect. That is a ridiculous standard to place upon yourself. But it will be wonderful, that I am sure. I know that you hold yourself to a very high standard but where is this need for perfection coming from?" Zelena asked, walking over to her sister and placing a gentle hand on her back.

Regina's head was down, her chin tucked into her chest. Zelena had seen Regina defeated only a handful of times over the course of the years they have spent both fighting and getting to know one another, growing to love each other dearly.

But now, Regina was happy. She was so in love with her blond savior, Henry was doing great, the town was thriving under her continued leadership. So Zelena had not seen her like this in quite some time.

Regina took a deep breath and began to mash at the already mashed potatoes, not speaking. Zelena waited, not wanting to push, but continued to keep her hand gently on the back of her sister to let her know she was still there. And she would wait.

It took a few more minutes before Regina began to slowly speak.

"It's Emma's first Thanksgiving with me. Officially, as a couple. And I know that she has forgiven me for my past. But she grew up without having a family because of me. She grew up without love surrounding her. Never having a Thanksgiving surrounded by those she loved. Because of me. And this is our first one together, and I just need it to be perfect for her. I want her to feel completely loved and surrounded by family and I just want so much for her Zelena." Regina spoke, pushing out the words at a forced clip all in one breath.

Before Zelena could even respond, she continued on, "And practically the entire town is coming over for this meal. To eat at the Evil Queen's house! All the hero's are going to descend, here! Where somehow now I'm considered one of the good guys," she laughed quietly taking another deep breath, "and I just need it to be great Zelena. I need it to be perfect so they know that I'm worthy of Emma now. And that she is loved and cared for the way she deserves to be."

All of the old fears of Regina's had bubbled to the surface that day. She had processed these fears, these feelings many times over after the curse was broken and she went from being feared to fighting alongside Snow and Emma. She went from leading the town by default to leading the town because they trusted her and chose her to set their direction. She had talked about this with Emma over the course of those months where she was learning how to navigate the feelings of being back as one. She was more honest with the blond than she had been with anyone her entire life. She trusted Emma with her feelings and emotions and fears and while she knew that Emma had forgiven her before she expressly heard the words, hearing them, spoken to her directly, honestly, hands clasped together, it was profound for them both.

But today she was overwhelmed. And her anxiety was getting the best of her.

"Regina…" Zelena began slowly. Carefully. She knew she needed to reassure her sister, but also knew it was a delicate balance to ensure she would truly listen. "I hear your concerns. And while I can't say I understand them, I understand where you are coming from. And while I would normally not just blindly tell you that your worries are unfounded, I can, in this case, tell your, your worries are unfounded. It's okay to desire hosting a lovely Thanksgiving at your home. It's normal to want it to be delightful for everyone attending. It natural to want to ensure your family especially has a wonderful day. And is happy. But, as I've come to know Emma over the course of your relationship with her, the one thing I do understand completely is that annoying blond savior is head-over-boots-and-faux-leather-jackets in love with you. And wants you to be as happy today as you desire for her.

"She loves you Regina. And a delicious stuffing has nothing to do with it. And what is most annoying the entire little situation you have created here my dear is that your once enemy now seems to be on of your best friends. I mean honestly. Snow White is your friend. And kind of adores you. And supports you being with her daughter. Actively supports it. If she only knew the depraved things you do to that hot blonde body," Zelena snickered as Regina shot her a glare.

"How do you not have these fears as well Miss Wicked Witch?" Regina turned her head to look at her big sister.

"Because dear sister, I for one don't have a problem being wicked."

"Reformed," Regina shot back.

"Just because I don't actively try to curse town's anymore does not mean I'm not still wicked. I'm just wicked in other ways. And I'm okay with that."

"You've been domesticated too Zelena."

"Well having a baby does that too you," she huffed. "I've been too tired for years to try to come up with schemes to drive you all crazy. Babies are little sleep thief's. Someone should warn a witch before having one."

Regina chuckled. It had been years since either one of them had been 'evil' or 'wicked' – even though Zelena would not admit that freely, about herself at least.

"How is my adorable niece, speaking of the little witch?" Regina asked while continued to whisk. She felt better. Lighter. Getting it off her chest made her realize that holding it in was making it her feel sick inside – and making it worse. But she had not wanted to unload on Emma and her sister was the perfect person to safely talk too. She knew exactly how to handle the situation and Regina felt immensely blessed to have her in her life.

"Well Regina. If you want perfect, that's my wicked little daughter. She is so smart. Obviously she takes after me. I can already see her giving you a run for your money running this town. And with Mulan as her other parent, she is not only brilliant but strong as well."

Zelena loved her daughter fiercely. And was not afraid to voice how she felt. To no ones surprise. "She is lucky to have Mulan," Regina chuckled.

Zelena swatter her shoulder, happy to see her sister's frame relax and a smile back on her face.

As Regina grabbed the final ingredients for the mashed potatoes, they heard the front door open. Emma was home.

"Where is Mulan and Robyn, I thought they would be coming over with you?"

"Well my brilliant Mulan thought we might desire some sister-time before everyone descended. I expect them to be over in a bit."

"Emma," Regina breathed out a sign of relief upon seeing the blond. "Hey babe!" Emma made her way into the kitchen, holding a tray of coffee's and a bag from the store. Placing the coffee's on a free space on the counter, she grabbed Regina by the waist, twirling her around and placing a soft kiss on her lips. Stepping back she dangled the bag by one finger in front of the brunette.

"Pepperoni," she ginned.

"My knight is bright red leather," Regina beamed, taking the offered bag.

"And," Emma exclaimed, "a café au lait, with two shots of vanilla, for my love." She grabbed the coffee and handed it to Regina placing another soft kiss on her plump lips.

"And one black coffee for Zelena, to match your soul," she grinned as she handed another cup over to the redhead.

"You wound me Emma. Your words twist at my heart and your heinous red leather assault my eyes," Zelena gasped, "how you put up with," she pointed at Emma, "that, is beyond me!" she rolled her eyes at her sister.

"Love you Greenie," Emma chuckled.

"Yeah yeah, I'm quite loveable," Zelena replied, stalking over to the blonde and placing a quick kiss on her cheek.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

The meal had been served, everyone jammed around the dining room table, the kitchen table and the additional table Henry had set up between the dining room and living room.

The kid's table held Henry, Violet, Robyn, Neal and Gabrielle and Oliver – the latter being Belle's twins – the little kids feeling quite pleased to be seated with the two favorite big kids.

The dining room held Regina, Emma, Snow, David, Zelena, Mulan, Red, Dorothy, Granny, Belle, Merida, Kathryn, Frederick, Archie, Jasmine and Aladdin.

The meal was delicious, to the surprise of no one. The conversation flowed freely, and the drinks flowed even more freely. The fire was roaring and Emma was beaming.

They had gone around the table saying everything they were thankful for that year as they ate. It was a new tradition Snow wanted to start, explaining that it was important to take a moment to express gratitude for all they had in their lives. And while Zelena had grumbled, the rest of the table loved the idea.

Snow began, of course expressing her gratitude for her family, her children, the town, the birds, until eventually Charming put a hand on her shoulder smiling and agreed with her gratitude to get her to stop from listing out every forest animal she could recall. He mentioned being thankful for his grandson Henry specifically; expressing how much he loved the time they spent together. They had built a special bond over the years and Henry turned to his grandfather often.

Red and Dorothy were grateful to be together and back in Storybrooke, with Granny agreeing, and also mentioning her delight with her business thriving. Zelena was grateful to see her daughter grow and in a moment of sincerity, expressed gratitude to be sharing her with Mulan.

Mulan spoke next, "In China, we learn from a young age that 'when you drink water, you must remember the mountain stream.' So I am thankful for the forces that brought us all together, and allowed us to each sit here today and express the gratitude that we feel." With that, she nodded slightly to Regina and Zelena and then continued to eat.

Regina expressed gratitude for sharing the holiday with everyone in their home, and while not one for big displays of affection, did turn to her blonde, "And I am most thankful that this year I found a love that I never knew was possible. And I am beyond grateful to now share my home with the love of my life and our son." She took a breath, "it's more than I deserve and I will be forever grateful for Emma and Henry. And Snow," she turned to the pixie haired woman, "for bringing these two amazing humans into my life."

You could have heard a pin drop when Regina spoke, everyone taking in the heartfelt words expressed by their former Evil Queen. Both Emma and Snow had tears in their eyes, and Henry a grin so big he was lighting up the room listening to his mother speak.

"And I guess you as well, Charming," she added on with a wink to the man next to Snow. The room erupted into light laughter as she broke the profound moment.

"To Thanksgiving," Snow stood and raised her glass, to which everyone grabbed theirs to join her in the toast. "To family, to love and to knowing that we indeed, will always find each other."

The room filled with the sound of more laughter and the clinking of glasses, much to the delight of the women at the head of the table.

Emma, however, only had eyes for the brunette on her immediate left. She leaned into her lover, placing a delicate kiss on the skin just under her ear. "Thank you. Thank you Regina. This is everything I dreamed it could be."

And then, completely breaking character, doing something only a few had ever seen her do before, Regina Mills, former Evil Queen, Mayor of Storybrooke, turned into her blonde, buried her head in her curls, and started to cry.

At that moment, no one at the table noticed what was happening to the Swan Mills woman at the end as Emma pulled Regina into a tight embrace, whispering quietly into her ear, "What's wrong babe?"

Regina could not answer. She just held tight to Emma's lithe frame and let her a few tears flow. It happened quickly, and was over before anyone truly noticed the moment. But as soon as Regina had a gained some control, Emma grabbed her hand and pulled her from the room, heading upstairs to their bedroom.

Once upstairs, behind the closed doors, Regina flung herself into Emma's arms, burying her face once more in the blonde's neck. Emma held her tightly, pressing their bodies together, giving Regina a moment to simply feel whatever it was that she was experiencing. Eventually moving the brunette to the lounger, they sat and Regina finally pulled away from Emma.

Taking the blonde's face into her hands, she smiled through her puffy eyes and tear soaked cheeks. "I just want to make you happy Emma. And I'm so happy that today is what you dreamed it could be. I love you Emma and am so grateful to have you in my life."

"Oh Regina, I feel the same way. I love you so very much and am so thankful we are finally where we are meant to be. Together. With our son." Emma beamed at her brunette, who beamed back, equally, deliriously happy and in love.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

Three pumpkin pies. Two apple pies. One pecan pie. One blueberry pie. A dozen bearclaws, made especially for Emma. A cobbler, two gallons of ice cream and three different kinds of whip cream. That's how much dessert was laid across the island of the Swan Mills kitchen. It was enough to feed a small army, which it kind of felt like had taken over the Mifflin street residence.

Everyone had taken their shares and spread across the mansion to enjoy the homemade delicacies. Emma had a plate piled high with sweet treats, which she was sharing with Henry and her little Bean at the kitchen table. Aladdin and Archie had made their way outside to get some fresh air, the twins, Belle, Ruby, Dorothy, Mulan and Jasmine were enjoying coffee, ice cream and pie at the dining room table, and Violet somehow managed to find her way into the living room with Zelena and Snow.

"So Violet. Have you put any more thought into the conversation we had a few weeks back?" Zelena inquired.

"Umm, well, no mam, I mean, yes, I've thought about it…once…or twice…" the usually composed Violet attempted to respond to the fiery redhead.

"I can tell you from personal experience young lady that it was the absolute best decision I've ever made. There is absolutely nothing that can compare to the love of a good woman," Zelena continued on.

Violet was bright red when Regina walked into the living room to join her sister and Snow. "Excuse me!" Regina said upon hearing her sister extolling the virtues of a lesbian relationship on her son's girlfriend.

"Well, I'd never thought it could be so exciting, but so soft and comforting at the same time," Zelena barreled on, now causing not only Violet to turn red, but Snow as well, her mouth hanging open as Zelena spoke.

"Zelena!" Regina barked, placing a hand on her shoulder. Bright eyes turned up to smile at her sister. "What are you going on about?"

"Well, I've just been speaking with Violet her about the benefits of a lesbian relationship. I know she appears to be all doe-eyed over Henry, but honestly, I just think she should give it a try, to ensure she is making the most informed decision."

"Zelena!" Regina was livid. She had no words. Her sister was insane. Literally insane. "She is 15! Please, please leave her alone." Regina then turned to the still beet red girl, "Violet, I am so sorry. My sister is deranged," she spoke, shooting another glare in the redhead's direction. "Why don't you go save Henry from himself and his other mother – they are attempting to eat a piece of every of dessert and they both are going to be sick and miserable soon enough. They are in the kitchen. With Neal, might I add," she nodded to Snow.

"Yes, thank you Regina," Violet popped up from her seat and practically ran out of the room.

"What dear sister," Zelena inquired, perplexed at the annoyance her little sister was expressing, "she should be making an informed decision. She has no idea what she is missing. Clearly you have discovered the upside to Sapphic love as well little one."

At that, fearing what would pop of out Zelena's mouth next, Snow excused herself to find her children, her face practically as red as Violet's.

"Zelena…" Regina growled, "you definitely keep things interesting, if nothing else."

"Love you sis," Zelena beamed back.

* * *

 **TBC.** I am ignoring every horrid thing they did to Belle tonight, so I'm rewriting her life, now with twins. Thank you for reading, fav'ing and your reviews are most appreciated.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N. Hope you enjoy. Happy December Swen.**

* * *

"We have height restrictions set in place for a reason Jerry. We don't want buildings that tall to obstruct the natural scenic beauty of our town. Yes, growth is important and critical to our economic development and well-being, but we also are a destination because of our natural charm and simple beauty. I appreciate what you are looking to bring to Storybrooke, but you need to rethink the ascetics of your project before it's approved."

"With all due respect Mayor Mills, yours is not the only opinion that matters in this town. You can't prohibit growth because you simply don't like the way it looks. Storybrooke is changing, and it has to move forward with the times. Eight stories is nothing in comparison to the projects I see in the future for Storybrooke. Your coastline is spectacular. We could have high rises doting the coast, giving summer residents and guests a view unrivaled by other cities in Maine. I see the…"

Regina cut him off with a raise of her hand and a raise of her eyebrow. "Jerry. My opinion is the only one that matters in this town. You forget who built this town up from a place of nothing to a small, thriving community. You know why when you walk around our downtown you don't see neon signs blaring and flashing? You don't see billboards doting our roads? You don't see massive construction projects taking away from our natural beauty and charm? It's because of me. I set a vision for Storybrooke and our city council see's that vision and believes in it. We will never be Portland, nor do we want to be. We will always retain our simplicity. And that is why your project will never be approved. We will never accept a modern, angular hotel with a reflective glass exterior. It won't happen. So rethink your approach and come back to me when you have figured out how to bring change to Storybrooke that is in line with our towns vision for growth." Regina stood, leaning forward over her table where she was meeting with yet another developer.

While small in stature, Regina was an imposing woman when determined, as she was in that moment. Scooting back from her chair, she caught the sight of a blonde head stepping away from the door.

"Good day Jerry," she finished as the man fumbled with his plans and stood to leave. After walking him out, she headed back inside her office, hearing a low whistle as she made her way to her desk.

"You are so _unbelievably sexy_ when you are angry and in charge," a familiar voice echo through the doorway.

" **Emma** ," Regina turned, a smile overtaking her expression, breathing out a sigh of relief at seeing her love.

"Rough day?" the blonde asked as she made her way over to her brunette.

"You could say that," Regina replied, "but getting exponentially better seeing your beautiful face."

Strong arms made their way around her petite frame, as brown eyes found hazel. "Hi," Emma murmured before sliding her lips gently against Regina's. They both took a moment to simply enjoy the feeling of one another. The softness of their lips sliding together. The feeling of security and love as their arms held each other tight. The way Regina played with the end of Emma's long ponytail as they kissed. So perfectly familiar.

They pulled away slowly from the kiss, arms still holding each other tightly, "So what do I owe the honor of your presence this afternoon Emma? It's only," Regina held up her arm to check her watch, "only 3:15. Should you not still be at the station?"

"Well yes, I should…but Amber, our new deputy is on duty, and it's a pretty quite day today. She can reach me if she needs me, but I have a surprise for you today."

Regina's eye's brightened up just a little. "Surprise?"

"Oh yes," Emma chuckled. Who knew Regina Mills, Mayor, and former Evil Queen, could be so adorable when it came to being surprised by her family. Emma hefted up the bag she had been carrying, "Will you accompany me to your private en suite to find out more?"

Another signature eyebrow lift was sent in Emma's direction. "No, no, we are not going in there to get busy babe."

"Emma!"

"Well, I know you were thinking about the last time the two of us lost track of time if your bathroom," she giggled as a blush spread over Regina's cheeks. "Just trust me."

Ten minutes later, the women emerged from the bathroom, dressed for winter. It was only a week post-Thanksgiving, but the weather in Storybrooke had dropped significantly. Winter had arrived with a vengeance, and there was even a light dusting of snow on the ground in some places throughout town.

Emma had brought Regina her winter boots along with some clothes Emma had specifically purchased for her brunette. They were not exactly Regina's style. Or not Regina's style at all. But Emma loved them and loved dressing her brunette every so often – when Regina let her – or – Regina had no other choice. Like in that moment.

As they exited the bathroom, Regina headed to her desk to turn off her laptop and straightened up her folders. Emma was on her phone, checking in with Henry to ensure he was ready for them.

When they were both prepared to head out, Emma grabbed Regina's bag, and the bag of their work clothes as the two women left the building.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

"Look, I drive with you in that yellow metal death trap because I love you. But this," Regina pointed at David's beat up brown pick-up truck. "You want me to willingly put my family in this?! Does it even still run?"

"Regina, it is very safe, we drive in it all the time," Snow cooed.

"And your word is one I am suppose to trust?" she shot back.

"Gina, you look like seester today," Neal spoke up from where he was attached to Regina's leg.

Regina's eyes popped open horror. Emma had to bite her cheek to stop from hysterically bursting out laughing.

"'cept you have brown hair and Emmy has long blond hair," Neal pointed out.

David had turned around trying to control his laughter and Snow had a smile so bright across her face, it was disturbing.

"What is it about Regina today that makes you think she looks like Emma?" Snow asked.

"Wellz, she has on tight tight blue pants, like Emmy always wears," Snow nodded as Neal spoke. "And she has on that soft button down shirt Emmy likes to wear when she is not in her uniform. Just like Daddy," he continued. "And she has on one of Emmy's vests, right?"

Once Emma had finally gained some control back, she launched herself at her little brother, pulling him up into her arms. "Bean! You are correct, Gina does look like me today! And guess, what, I have something else that I bet will make your favorite person even happier."

His eyes grew big as he glanced between his big sister and his Regina. "What!?" he shouted.

"Henry, toss me that bag please," she asked her son. Leaning down with Neal still carefully secured at her hip, she pulled out three beanies, one red, one grey, and one black. She tossed the red one to Henry, and he securely pulled it over his head. She pulled on the grey one herself and handed the black one to Neal.

"Bean, can you help me put this on Gina?" Emma asked, grinning like an idiot.

"YEAH!"

Regina, still wavering between horror and hysterical laughter, began slowly backing away from Emma and Neal.

"No. Absolutely not. I am not wearing one of those atrocious beanies Emma Swan. I know you love them," she continued as she made her way slowly back from the woman and child approaching her. "But you already have me in jeans and flannel."

 **"Jeans. And. Flannel. Swan.** **Do. Not. Push. Your. Luck**."

"But Gina, Bean and I think you are going to look very cute in this hat, right Bean?"

"YEAH!" he shouted again. "You look cute Gina! And you match Emmy!"

As Regina continued to slowly back away from the pair with a disbelieving look upon her face, she suddenly found herself stopped against another body. Arms shot around her frame as she screamed, turning to see who had trapped her.

"HENRY SWAN MILLS!"

Henry laughed and laughed as he held his brunette mother in place. She was such much smaller than him now, as he held her gently in his arms.

"But mom," he cried, "you will look so cute! And you will match Emmy," he smirked. "A beanie really completes the lesbian chic look you have going here."

" **Lesbian chic**?" both his mothers deadpanned.

"Yeah, Aunt Zelena told me what that means. Flannel. Boots. Beanies. Lesbian chic."

"I'm gonna kill that witch," Regina muttered, as Emma, Snow and David all burst out laughing.

"I wanna be lesbian chic too!" proclaimed Neal, still perched on Emma's hip.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

After much convincing and prodding, the family of three set out in David's pickup with Emma behind the wheel.

Regina was tucked in the middle between her lover and her son, deliriously happy even though her head _was_ covered in a beanie. Christmas music was playing on the radio as they drove to the outskirts of town.

"So Henry, you knew about this surprise too?"

"Oh yeah Mom, Ma and I are in the loop."

"In the loop?"

"Yeah. On the same page."

Emma chuckled, "we wanted to do something fun as a family to surprise you and felt this was the perfect idea."

Emma and Henry had conspired to pull this off a few days prior. Henry would go to his grandparents after school to meet his mom's there. Emma had cleared Regina's schedule with her secretary and packed a bag of their clothes the day prior while Regina was cooking dinner.

"So when are you going to enlighten the last member of your family?"

"When we arrive babe. For now just enjoy us being together."

The trio drove through the woods, the warmth inside the truck cabin contrasting the beautiful and wintery scene outside. A dusting of snow covered the woods and the pine trees as they bumped along.

Emma pulled over to the side of the forest when they arrived at a large clearing and threw the vehicle into park. Pulling on her thick gloves, she opened the car door and slid out, turning to hold out her hand for Regina to step down from the truck.

She pulled the brunette into her arms as she came down, placing a soft kiss on her lips. "It's beautiful out here Emma," Regina spoke into the crook of Emma's neck as she held her tightly. "Indeed."

While still holding each other tightly, they heard the sounds of their son making their way around the truck. Turning to him with a smile, Henry appeared holding an enormous saw. "Henry, what is that you are holding, exactly?" Regina in full woman/mom/mayor-in-charge-mode asked.

"Well mom, we are here to start a new annual family tradition."

"A new family tradition…I like the sound of this," Regina allowed from her place in the blonde's arms, although still skeptical as to why her son was holding an enormous saw. "And what might that be?"

"We are here to cut down our Christmas tree babe!" Emma exclaimed excitedly.

"Our first Christmas tree? Together?" Regina was shocked at the thoughtfulness and sentimentality of the blonde. "That sounds…it sounds just perfect."

Grabbing a bag from the bed of the pickup, Emma handed one to Regina, explaining, "thermoses of hot chocolate to keep us warm," and held up the other, "the tools we might need to obtain and secure our tree."

"Do you have the required permits Sheriff Swan?" the Mayor inquired.

"Of course Madame Mayor," Emma smirked, winking to Henry.

"Well you thought of everything you two," Regina beamed.

"Yeah, me and Ma, we are on the same page," Henry chuckled.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

Two hours later, the trio appeared back at the truck, slightly worse for the wear. Emma and Henry were dragging their tree, now wrapped in netting, as Regina carried their tools and empty Thermo containers.

"Almost there Henry. Let's put the bottom of the tree up toward the cab in the bed of the truck, and then use the bungee cords to ensure it won't fly out on the drive home."

The two pulled and pushed as Regina popped open the bed of the truck, Emma hopping into the back to heave the tree up and to the end. After throwing the bungee's across the top, the tree was secured and ready to make it's way to the Swan Mills residence.

"How is your hand feeling Henry?" Regina inquired.

"It's fine mom. I'm fine, it didn't even hurt, I promise!"

Of course when Henry and Emma were sawing down the tree the three eventually agreed upon, Emma had pulled too hard, Regina has huffed and Henry's hand flew into the trunk. After that, and taking almost an hour for the three to agree on a tree, encasing it with netting was the final straw. Emma had fallen on her ass three times as they wrestled with the tree, which the brunette's thought was hilarious, but when it was Regina's turn to take a crash landing, she was neither pleased nor amused.

While they had absolutely had a fabulous afternoon hunting and cutting down their Christmas tree, it was not as idyllic as it was portrayed to be in movies and books.

But it was real. And they had fun. And made some wonderful memoires together that day in the woods.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

When they got home, Emma and Henry spent the next hour or so bringing up the Christmas boxes from the basement while Regina prepared dinner for the trio. Once the tree stand was in place, and the ornament boxes and lights were ready to go, Henry and Emma made their way out to the truck once again to bring the tree into the house.

Struggling with the netting, they released the branches and shook the tree on the front yard to Regina's expressed directions, ensuring the least amount of needles made their way into the house.

Once the tree was in the stand, Regina ensuring it's position as Emma huffed from the floor underneath the tree, it was ready to be decorated.

Henry had put on Elf the movie to play in the background of the living room while they decorated, spending time watching and laughing at the antics of Elf on-screen while Regina and Emma wrapped the tree in white lights.

"Ever since Henry was little, we had a tradition that he placed the first ornament on the tree. It's always a new ornament that we buy together during the year. Then I place on the tree topper at the end," Regina explained to the blonde. "But I was thinking we could start a new tradition this year. Henry, what do you say?"

Henry nodded enthusiastically. Regina walked over a bag she had placed in the living room earlier that evening, waiting for this exact moment.

"A gift, for you Emma," she handed the blonde a beautifully wrapped gift bag, feeling immensely glad she had this ready to give to her blonde when she surprised her earlier that day to bring home their tree. "It's from Henry and I."

Emma took it gingerly, like it was made of precious glass, as she sat on the couch to open the bag. Regina sat next to her, Henry on the floor in front of his mothers.

Emma pulled out the contents and found first, a stocking, her name carefully stitched in blue over a green and red stocking, white and silver snowflakes glittering on the design. "A stocking? For me?"

"Yup, to match mine and mom's!" Henry leapt up and ran across the living room to grab his stocking and his mothers from the bin he knew they must be stored. Emma's matched theirs perfectly, Regina and Henry flowing across the two stockings he presented to her.

"They are beautiful," she whispered in awe. "It's my first stocking," she explained.

"Your first?" Henry asked in disbelief.

"Yeah kid, my first." Emma stated factually, not realizing the impact her statement might have on the brunette to her left.

"I'm so sorry Emma," Regina forced out, guilt hitting her like a brick wall. "It's my fault. It's all my fault." Regina posture turned from one of lightness and ease into a rigid straight spin surrounded by an aura of pain and fear.

"No, Regina, do not go there," Emma reacted immediately to the shift in the woman she loved. "Please. This is the perfect day babe. None of what happened to me was your fault," Emma exclaimed, attempting to look into the brown eyes that were cast down into Regina's lap. "Please, please focus on what is happening right now, and the happiness we have found together. Please."

Regina needed a moment. She nodded resolutely.

"I just, let me refresh our drinks. Please." She stood and practically ran from the room.

Henry and Emma looked at each other, each wondering the best way to handle the situation. Their afternoon of fun and merriment had taken such a quick turn as Regina's walls shot up immediately at Emma's words.

"I'll go," they both said at the same time, causing them each to chuckle as they both stood looking at each other in the center of the room.

Only a few moments later Regina reappeared back in the room much to the delight to her family. They both shot looks of matching concern to the brunette, as Regina looked between their faces seeing the fear in each of their eyes.

"I only needed a minute. I promise, I'm okay," she carefully explained.

Seeing the tension gone from her posture, Emma looked her carefully in her eyes and saw the Regina of earlier had returned, the guilt gone for the moment. Placing a gentle kiss on her plump lips, she smiled, "for us?" as she noticed the goodies on the tray.

"Yes, for you." Regina placed the tray or drinks and cookies onto the coffee table.

"These look delicious mom, thank you!" Henry exclaimed excitedly, digging into the cookies immediately.

Emma grabbed a cookie as well, taking a sniff at the caramel apple cider Regina had prepared for the trio.

"Why don't you open your other present Emma," Regina chuckled watching the two gobble down the cookies she had baked while they had worked.

Emma picked up the bag she had carefully placed at her feet, and pulled out the other gift, feeling one of Regina's hands make it's way under her flannel to caress her warm skin. Opening it slowly as Regina took a sip of the cider with her free hand, Emma unwrapped carefully.

It was a brilliant red Christmas ornament in the shape of tree. It was heavy in Emma's hand, and felt like some sort of metal that was quite precious. Etched into the tree were the names of their family: Regina, Emma and Henry with 2016 etched at the bottom. "What do you both think?" Regina asked.

"I love it," Emma exclaimed softly as Henry echoed, "its perfect mom."

"Ma, would you like to hang our first ornament this year?" Henry asked.

"Are you sure kid? I thought that was your job?"

"I have a feeling you might do it better than me this year, okay?"

Regina was beaming as she watched her loves interact. Watched the joy Henry expressed at having his two moms together as Emma walked up to the tree and gingerly placed the ornament on the top.

"Perfect," Regina whispered as Emma turned directly into her arms, their lips meeting briefly by the light of the Christmas tree.

"Come here, kid," Emma pulled at Henry, bringing their son tightly into their sides.

"Merry Christmas Mom and Ma, I think its going to be a good one this year."

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

"Did I mention that Robyn is now able to write out her name, my name and Mulan's name with ease," Zelena asked as she and Mulan were squished into one side of a booth at Granny's, Regina and Emma on the other. "She is so exceptional and not even in kindergarten yet. I am warning you Regina, you have real competition headed your way for Mayor of Storybrooke. Well, she will either be Mayor, or a leader of organized crime. I can't commit yet."

"Well, let's hope it is the former Zelena, I would hate to square off against my sweet niece if she brought organized crime into Storybrooke. We have finally gotten control of the villains in this town," she shot a pointed looked via a raised eyebrow to her sister. "Let's just see how kindergarten goes, alright?"

"I just see big things in her future," explained Zelena.

"No one doubts that Z," reassured Mulan seriously.

"Well, now that we are all aware, again, of Robyn's potential to take over the world," Regina spoke as she reached down into her bag. She pulled out a festive red envelope, Zelena and Mulan elegantly scripted across the front. "Emma and I have a Christmas present for you both. Merry Christmas you two, a little early, but I think you might understand why when you open the envelope."

Zelena laughed, delighted as she grabbed for the envelope across the table, nudging Mulan with her shoulder and she slide her long finger through the top to break the seal.

"What might this be?" she giggled.

They pulled out the card, where inside the pair found two tickets to Wicked and two tickets to the Radio City Rockette's Christmas Spectacular inside.

"Emma and I took the liberty of booking our trip we discussed last month! We are going to NYC next weekend."

"Our fight is Friday at 2pm, and we return on Sunday late afternoon. We have us booked at a hotel in Times Square, and tickets for both Friday and Saturday evenings."

"This is too much Regina and Emma," Mulan replied immediately. "We cannot accept a gift of this generosity. As much as it would be absolutely delightful to partake in such a wonderful trip together."

"Mulan, while we appreciate your hesitation, this is about family. Zelena and I have worked very hard to get to where we are today, and we are both happy, safe and in love. Which frankly I never expected to happen in my wildest dreams," she grinned at the woman at the table. "I just want to enjoy this time we have together. Please."

"And plus it's going to be so fun Mulan! I want us to go ice skating at Rockafella Center, we are going to get these two to eat some real New York pizza if it kills us and I'm sure with the shopping these two are going to do, I need you there with me or else I'm going to get bored out of my mind!"

"She has a point, Regina and I are going to shop. It's New York City, you can't expect any less. Who will help Emma carry all our bags if you don't come along?" Zelena grinned as a smile spread across Mulan's face.

"So this means that I don't have to try on clothes with you? You are not going to force me to walk around stores as you grab piles to try on for us both?" Mulan inquired.

"Yeah," Emma pointed to Mulan as she glanced at Regina, "what she said! I don't have to try on clothes either, right?"

"Goodness you two, you think we ask you to have a root canal every time we go shopping. Yes, you both would be off shopping duty if Mulan and Zelena come with us to NYC."

"Sold," the Chinese woman deadpanned.

"Completely," Emma smirked.

"Wonderful. Snow and David, with Henry's assistance, have graciously offered to watch Robyn. And since she and Neal are such good friends, we figured that would be an acceptable solution for you."

"Did you ever think that one day Snow White would be watching our kids while we take our sexy lesbian lovers off to gallivant around New York City for a trip undoubtedly that will be filled with complete debauchery," Zelena mock-whispered to her sister.

"No, I never in my wildest dreams could have come up with that one. And clearly I excel at creativity."

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

Emma and Regina were wrapped up in each other's arms, naked but warm and cozy under their duvet late one evening that week.

"I'm really looking forward to our trip babe."

"You know, no one else on earth could get away with calling me that particular term Emma. No one. And you get away with it just barely," Regina replied as she ran her fingers absentmindedly across Emma's toned stomach. Her head was buried in Emma's neck, Emma's arm wrapped strongly around her smaller frame, their bodies nestled tightly together.

"You kinda are a babe through Regina. Have you seen you lately? It's an entirely accurate term to describe you," Emma explained as Regina smacked Emma playfully on her stomach where she had been caressing the blonde. "What, it's true! You are smoking hot. Gods earlier this week when I walked in on you in your office, that tight grey dress showing off your curves, your exceptional ass, and you were telling that idiot who was boss. You are so arousing; I can barely control myself sometimes around you Regina. So while babe is certainly a term of affection and endearment, it's also accurate."

She could feel the brunette chuckling as she spoke. When Emma was done with her dissertation on how attractive she was, Regina slid her body up and over the blondes, pressing her naked center on top of the blondes.

"So you think I'm attractive, then darling?" she asked as she slowly rolled her hips against the woman beneath her.

"Well I'm pretty sure I just extolled your many virtues babe. Yes. I think you are the sexiest woman on the planet. No contest."

"Well I certainly think there are other woman who are as attractive as I am. She leaned down and tugged on one of Emma's exposed nipples playfully in her mouth before she rose slightly to speak again. In fact, I believe I happen to have one underneath me at this moment."

"Is there someone downstairs I should know about Regina?" Emma deadpanned back.

"You idiot," Regina muttered as she lowered herself completely on the blonde, her lips naturally finding their way to the blondes. Emma's hand made their way up and down Regina's smooth olive skin as the two leisurely pressed their lips together, gently nipping bottom lips, tongues playfully caressing one another in a gentle dance.

When the kiss naturally ended, Regina leaned back, resting her head on Emma's chest.

"Do you ever think about our first kiss Emma?"

"Of course I do. It was the most amazing and scariest thing that's ever happened to me Regina. You were – and still are – my best friend. I knew something was happening between the two of us as we spent those many months together, talking, sharing secrets with each other we had never spoken of before. But to think we could be here, where we are today, really did take me by surprise."

"You mean even with the way I looked at you Emma, so often, you had no idea that I had developed feelings for you?"

"No, I guess I didn't. I knew that we were close, and I trusted you above all else. But the idea that we could fall in love – or in romantic love – because I've loved you for a long time Regina – that was new."

"Was it because I was a woman?"

"Oh no, I've been with women before," Emma easily replied. "You know that."

"Yes, but you had only been with women sexually, you had never had a relationship with a woman before, correct?"

"Yup. I guess it was not that you were a woman that scared me. It was that you are you Regina."

A look of fear passed across Regina's face as Emma spoke. It was palpable how the mood shifted so quickly, Regina beginning to pull away from the blonde.

"Regina, stop! I mean, that you are the other mother of my child! It was about Henry, and how well we do raising him together. While I've always found you attractive, I mean, I think even Granny knows what a hot piece of ass you are," Emma chuckled, knowing how much Regina hated that term, "I never let myself go there. To think about us sexually. Because of Henry, and fear of upsetting the incredible balance that we had created between us."

"That I can understand. I never realize that I was falling in love with you until it hit me like a train. That day, on the couch downstairs. I realized I loved you. I was **_in_** love with you."

"The night we kissed?"

"Yes. And it came as a shock to me too Emma. You are the first woman I had fallen for since my dalliance with Maleficent so many decades ago. I thought she was an anomaly. Then with the look you gave me that night, I knew you were feeling at least something similar to what I was feeling."

"It did feel like all the air had been sucked out of the room. We went from talking to suddenly getting lost in one another's eyes. It was not the first time that had happened, but it was the first time that I consciously realized it was happening. I remember your eyes flickering between mine and my lips. And being completely taken aback that it seemed like you were thinking the same thing I was in that moment. How badly I wanted to kiss you."

"Oh gods and then we did. And it was not an easy, slow going first kiss Emma. We went from complete silence to gasping into each other's mouths, hands all over one another in a matter of moments. It was so intense, coming to realize everything all at once. I loved you. I wanted you. Wanted to be with you," Regina's eye glazed over as she got lost in that moment.

The fireplace was roaring. Music was playing in the background, Henry was upstairs asleep. Emma had dinner at their home, as she had begun to do several nights a week. They would enjoy a quiet evening with their son, have dinner together and clean up with Henry completed his homework. Sometimes Violet would join them. Sometimes it was a bigger group. But inevitably the evening ended with Emma and Regina comfortably tucked into the couch with glasses of wine, or cider, drinking and talking. Laughing. Losing track of time as they simply enjoyed one another's company.

And that one night, the night everything changed, they had kissed, so passionately, so overcome with the emotions that had been building between the pair for years had finally exploded as they went from kissing to Regina straddling Emma, her hands buried in golden locks, Emma's finding their way underneath a silk shirt Regina had worn that evening. A tangle of limbs they ended up horizontal on the couch, groping and grasping each other with a ferocious desperation.

They kissed and touched and immersed themselves in each other for what felt like hours, completely lost in the moment, until a stark realization of what they were doing hit them both.

 _Is this the right thing to do? Could they really be together physically and not hurt the beautiful relationship they had already built? What would Henry think? What happened if things fell apart? What did this mean?_

Regina had pulled back, brown eyes finding blue, both entirely unsure of what to do next. Their chests heaved as they looked at each other with lust. With love clearly evident over both of their expression. But also with a trace amount of fear.

"Should you…" Regina tentatively asked, her head nodding toward the door, uncertainty clear in her voice.

"Yeah, I should go," Emma announced, grabbing her things, putting her boots back on and heading out the door.

* * *

 **TBC.** Would love to hear your thoughts! Hope you enjoyed.


	8. Chapter 8

"Do you think I could be a Rockette?" Emma asked, her arm wrapped firmly around Regina's slight frame. The pair were walking up 5th Avenue, bundled up to fight off the cold. Emma was in her skin-tight jeans, black this time, with a soft white cable knit sweater underneath a beautiful maroon pea coat, a black beanie over her flowing blond hair. Regina was in all black, black boots, a black coat, with a beautiful black cashmere sweater with leather accents. They were a stunning pair, oblivious to the looks thrown their way as they made their way to Radio City.

Zelena and Mulan were following closely behind, Zelena's red hair flowing over her skintight green dress. Mulan, dressed far more sensibly for their walk around mid-town Manhattan.

"I believe you do have the physique to be a Rockette Emma, and while I'd certainly enjoy those long legs of yours giving me quite a show, I believe that you do not meet the height requirements. Additionally, while I do immensely enjoy the dancing you do for me on occasion," Regina practically purred as she leaned up and into Emma's ear, a blush making it's way across Emma's already flushed-from-the-cold cheeks, "I'm not aware of a proficiency in ballet, tap _and_ jazz, unless there is something I'm missing?"

"Well I guess you have me there. But there is seriously a height requirement to be a Rockette?"

"Oh yes, dear, you are in for quite a treat. These women are the best of the best dancers that NYC have to offer."

"How do you know all this Regina? I was the one who lived here for a year!"

"I researched before we arrived. I like to be informed," she smirked at the blonde.

"Regina, look, the windows of Saks!" Zelena practically skipped her way up to her sister. "We have to go look. The dresses are to die for."

"Oh yes dear, I plan on it," Regina replied with a grin. "But we do need to make our way to the show, let's plan on a walk afterward."

"Is this Rockefeller Center?" questioned Mulan, pointing to their left in an attempt to redirect the sisters away from Saks.

"Yes! I love it here. Let's go look at the tree and see if anyone is ice skating," Emma exclaimed, grabbing Regina's hand to cross the street.

The four women made their way to Rock Center, as they took in the lights, the Angels adorning the walkway, and then the beautiful Christmas tree standing tall at the center. Emma's arms were around Regina, who was tucked into her blond, her back to Emma's front. Nuzzling Regina's soft brown hair, she pressed a kiss to her head.

"It's beautiful, yeah?"

"Oh darling, it certainly is," Regina replied, turning in Emma's arms with a smile. "This is wonderful Emma," Regina responded, lifting on her toes just slightly to press a soft kiss to the blonde's pink lips.

"I never had spent much time in NYC before Henry and I lived here for that year. I always loved Boston because it felt so vibrant, but smaller, and easier to navigate. But being here for year, I fell in love with the city, it's so alive and there is always so much to do and see. I'm happy to be here with you, now. Next time we come, let's bring Henry back, yeah?"

Regina nodded, pressing another kiss to Emma's cheek, turning around to gaze at the tree again.

"Alright ladies, I believe the show begins in 30 minutes, so we need to make our way over to the theatre," Mulan interjected from her perch next to Zelena gazing at the tree.

"You know you can visit the top of Rock Center to see a view of all of NYC. I read that it's spectacular if it's a clear day," explained Mulan as they walked toward Radio City. "Central Park is magnificent this time of year, regardless of the cold weather from everything I've read."

"I agree, and there is an amazing pizza place near the park we have to visit. Henry and I ate there as often as we got to midtown!"

The four women made their way into the long line on 49th waiting to get admitted into the theatre. And when they finally made their way inside, the look on all four of their faces was one of pure joy. The seriousness of Mulan, the snark of Zelena, the love of Emma and the focus on Regina all disappeared, taken over by the joy and beauty the of the incredible theatre. The walls were adorned in maroon and gold, an absolutely enormous chandelier in the shape of a Christmas tree hung from the ceiling. The entire place was vibrating with the feeling of Christmas – Santa hats were handed out to all theatregoers, as Christmas cheer filled the air.

The woman made their way up to the stairs, all taking a moment to turn around to see the bustling lobby beneath them. "It's quite beautiful," Regina commented to the three as they made their way past the Rockette standing in front of a tree, waiting to take photos with guests.

As they walked past, the lanky blonde sent a wink to Regina as she passed, a small grin appearing on the brunettes face as scowling Emma tugged Regina into her side, shooting the blonde a glare, while Zelena cackled behind them.

After obtaining a glass a wine for each of the women, they made their way into the theatre and down to their seats.

"Fifth row, these are wonderful, thank you," Mulan leaned across her redhead to thank Emma and Regina.

"You are welcome, this is going to be great," Emma replied, taking in the beauty surrounding them, pulling Regina's hand firmly into her lap, lacing their fingers together as they enjoyed the view.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

An hour and a half later, they women emerged from the theatre with smiles on their faces.

"The synchronized fall when they are toy soldiers, that was absolutely my favorite part," Mulan explained. "The way they hooked their hands into the arms of the woman in front of them, like a giant people puzzle, the balance, the precision, just incredible."

"I really liked that too, and the way they moved in the lines that were so straight and timed so perfectly, regardless of how large or small of a step they had to take. How long do they to practice to coordinate it? That was nuts!" Emma replied.

The Rockette's were a hit. The seats were amazing. The story was cute, lighting fantastic and music put them right in the Christmas spirit.

"Thanks sis," Zelena hooked her arm into Regina's. "That was great. I can't wait to take Robyn when she is older and can really enjoy this."

"I was wondering if Henry would like it or if we missed our window," Regina lamented.

"Regina. He is a teenage boy. I feel like regardless of the cute story, any teenage boy who likes girls would not mind watching, what, like 40 gorgeous women dance and kick their long, luscious legs up in his face. I think he'd suffer through the wet dream. I did. The view was nice sis," Zelena winked.

"Zelena!" Regina hit her on the shoulder as they made their way out of the theatre. "Do not talk about my son like that! He is too young to be ogling women. He's innocent Zelena."

"Sure he's is Regina," Zelena threw her head back, her shoulders bumping slightly up and down as Regina glared at her with the eyes of the Evil Queen.

"That's why I had the sex talk with him," Emma interjected from behind. "It's really cute that Regina thinks he is still 10, but I wanted him to know the importance of making good decisions and thinking clearly about what he wants, and what Violet wants. It actually was a really good talk."

"Blondie did it?" Zelena hooked her thumb in Emma's direction. "Seriously?"

"Yes, she did," Regina huffed, "And she did an excellent job. Even before we were together, I do give her credit for how well she handled it. Although she did it too early for my liking. Henry is a good boy."

The three women all laughed, much to Regina's annoyance. No one could tell her otherwise, Henry was still innocent and that was the end of the story.

"Didn't blondie over here give birth to Henry when she was not much older than he is now?"

A glare was shot at the redhead from all three of the women.

"Okay…moving on…"

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

After strolling up 5th Ave, making their way past Bergdorf's, looking into the windows at Tiffany's and Cartier, the women parted for the evening and went to their separate rooms.

Emma had stripped immediately upon walking into the room and landed on the bed in her boy shorts and bra, giving Regina access to the bathroom first.

Wiggling her toes, she dove into the latest chapter of her story. She was dying for The Queen and Anglasha to finally kiss, and desperately hoped today would be the day. She truly didn't know how Anglasha did it, being in the same room, sharing the same bed as the Queen and not being able to kiss her. From the descriptions of the character, she reminded Emma an awful lot of Regina, and after Emma had learned just how amazing kissing her was, she could never share a bed with Regina and not kiss her.

Chuckling to herself as she read about the adventures Anglasha embarked upon with her twin son and daughter, who were stinkin' adorable, she finished the chapter with a grin on her face.

Hopping up, she figured Regina must be almost done. She turned the corner of their room and was stopped in her tracks. Regina was wearing nothing but a lacy black thong and matching lacy black bra, her olive skin on display, all smooth lines and curves, her absolutely heart-stopping ass catching and holding Emma's gaze. She was leaning over the sink, looking into the mirror, engrossed in her task. And all Emma could do was stare.

Regina really was sex on a legs.

Her body, her mouth, the way she moved, held herself, her voice, oh gods her voice. Emma swore the more her body became attuned to Regina, she could come to the brink of orgasm with just Regina talking dirty to her, without even a touch.

"You are so beautiful," Emma sighed, still leaning against the doorframe.

The corners of Regina's mouth turned up just slightly, as she looked up, her eyes finding Emma in the mirror.

"Hello there," she smirked, her eyes shamelessly roving up and down Emma's body.

Taking slow, small steps, Emma held Regina's gaze as she approached the brunette. Her hands landed on Regina's hips as she leaned against the smaller woman, her body pressing against Regina's. The feeling of skin on skin was something precious. Mesmerizing. Magical, even. Regina's exposed ass pushing into Emma's center, Emma's generous breasts pressing into Regina's back. They both groaned softly, enjoying the feeling of each other after a long day out in the city.

"Are you ready for bed yet?" Emma asked, pressing a kiss to Regina's shoulder.

"I was thinking of taking a quick shower, just to get the city off of me. Would you care to join me?" Regina asked as she pushed off the counter, turning her body to slot into Emma's waiting arms once again.

Emma nodded, her eyes not hiding the arousal coursing through her body. With a quick peck to Emma's pale pink lips, Regina walked over to the shower to turn it on. While waiting for the water to heat, Emma quickly grabbed her toothbrush to brush her teeth, before she turned to join the olive skinned beauty whom had just stepped inside.

Quickly stripping and pulling her hair into a floppy bun on top of her head, Emma opened the door to the large shower, closing it quickly to keep the steam inside. Regina was standing under the large rain showerhead, her neck bent forward to keep the water from her hair.

A hand reached out for the blonde, as Regina stepped aside to let Emma into the warm water. No words were needed between the two, as Regina grabbed a soft washcloth and lathered it with sweet smelling soap. She gently began to wash Emma's back, making gentle circles as she made her way across Emma's pale skin.

Emma moaned gently as Regina's other hand held her hip, closing her eyes to enjoy the sensation of the warm water, the gentle cloth cleaning her and Regina's touch. It was intoxicating.

Regina took great care to clean Emma's shoulders, using the cloth to massage down her arms. Rinsing the cloth, she added more soap, and turned Emma around, careful to pull her out of the direct spray to keep her hair dry, she placed a gentle kiss on Emma's closed eyelids, then her mouth, open just a bit as she breathed in and out, lost in a trance of sensation.

It was not sexual, although the connection, the moment between them was certainly sensual. This was about love, tenderness and intimacy, as Regina took great care of washing the day off of Emma. Turning her gently around again, Emma stepped into the shower spray, washing the soap off her body.

When she was clean, she turned to Regina was a soft smile on her face, her hand open and waiting for the washcloth to return the favor.

Emma went through similar motions on the brunette, keeping her anchored through touch, alighting all her nerve endings was the soft motions of the washcloth and steady feeling of the water pouring over her body. Similar to Emma, Regina closed her eyes, losing her sense of sight to heighten her other senses as Emma loved and cared for her.

As Emma's fingers gripped her waist, she felt the softness of the cloth, yet the roughness of it in comparison to the gentle water beading down her body. The spray hitting her exposed back, Emma's washcloth cleaning her stomach, her hips, her breasts.

"No one has ever cared for me the way you do Emma," Regina whispered.

"And no one has ever cared for me the way you do Regina."

Brown eyes opened, catching green, a gentle smile of knowing, of understanding passing between the women.

"I guess we are lucky that we both finally opened up fully to one another then, and realized what we could be. Because we deserve this," Emma continued on.

After years of isolation, much to her own doing she knew, the only tenderness she received was from her son. And she lost that for several years before it returned. Robin never paid her this type of loving attention. And the only time she had a glimpse of what true affection was like was with Daniel. So, so long ago. But with Emma, she felt loved. And trusted. Daily.

And Emma only had a glimpse of what this type of affection could be like when she was with Neal. But they were so young, on the run and living from bad situation to bad situation. And then he abandoned her, and shattered the idea that this type of love existed.

Now that they had it, with each other, it was profound to feel the type of connection they had built. Years of friendship lead to honest truths lead to true love.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

Emma fingers were carefully caressing Regina's center, thrusting in and out at a maddeningly slow pace. She refused to speed up, to go harder, to go deeper, even though she knew it was what the brunette was craving. But Emma was lost in her own head, overcome with lust and arousal so strong that all she could feel was the silky walls surrounding her fingers. The breathy moans escaping from Regina's mouth when she thrust into her, and the sighs as she pulled out.

She was lost in the smell of the room, the smell of sex and lust. The motion of her hand, the feeling of Regina's breasts pushed against her, the trickles of sweat running between them.

"Emma…" Regina crooned. "Harder."

Emma did not respond, only shaking her head to indicate she had heard the woman writhing beneath her. Regina had already come once, her clit pressed against Emma's thigh as she rode her hard sitting above her, Regina's breasts bouncing gloriously as she moved and arched her back. She came another time with only Emma's mouth, her tongue buried deep inside of her as her thumb worked Regina's clit relentlessly. And she came a third time when Emma's mouth and fingers worked in harmony while Regina's mouth and fingers simultaneously brought Emma to release. Both women really loved that position.

But Emma wanted more. She knew Regina had one more in her, at a minimum. And she was going to get it. So she kept at it, slow and steady, pushing and pulling, loving the way Regina's hips continued to push up when Emma retracted, the way her body moved in tandem with Emma's above her.

"Please…" Regina groaned into Emma's ear. Emma loved it when she reduced Regina to a writhing, begging mess. When they first became truly intimate with one another, there was a small wall between the two that took some time to fall. Being naked together was new and even though their relationship was built on a foundation of trust and love, sex was something else. The passion was always there, but the ability to be open, demanding, and talk about limits and what they wanted to explore together took time, and was something they were still learning about one another today.

But the wall of begging had finally been pushed down, and Emma **_loved it_** when Regina begged. She loved it in all kinds of dirty ways. Making the Queen so needy for her. No one saw that side of Regina and it was so fucking hot.

"I promise," Emma groaned, "I'll let you cum. Just keep moving for me. Keeping make those sounds. You are so fucking sexy…"

Emma kept her hand moving at a steady pace, until she finally pulled up from being plastered against Regina's body and shimmied down the bed, using her free hand to push Regina's leg's apart. "One more baby."

Regina was a mess, her clit swollen and throbbing, so needy for Emma, Emma's mouth watering at the sight. She took a moment to look up from her position between Regina's legs. Skin glistening with sweat, with cum, Regina's body was covered in marks from Emma's mouth and nails, her dark nipples tight and at attention was so unbelievably sexy. But it was the look on her face that really stopped Emma in her tracks. Regina's pupils were blown with lust, completely black. Her eyes open wide, staring right back at Emma, her mouth open, panting with need, her hair a mess from their rounds and rounds of love making. She was stunning. And she was hers.

Not moving her gaze from those of the brown eyes fixed on her, Emma's mouth immediately sought her target, and with one firm stroke, Regina bucked, as Emma encased her clit entirely with her warm mouth. And sucked. Hard.

Within moments, Regina's body rose off the bed, her head thrown back, nonsensical moans and phrases interspersed with calls of Emma's name as she came, hard.

Slowly Emma removed her fingers, then let go of Regina's clit in favor of small kisses to her swollen pussy. Regina's entire body fell, completely spent, into a heap on the white sheets as Emma made her way back up to Regina's face, finding her lips for a soft kiss.

Emma pulled up the covers, pulling Regina into her as the brunette wrapped her entire body around the blonde.

While Regina could barely move, barely function her body was so overcome from multiple orgasms, she knew Emma must be vibrating with need. She let her hand quickly find it's way between Emma's leg, pushing them apart with one of her own.

"Babe, you don't ha…" Emma started, cut off immediately by a long, soft moan as Regina entered her with three fingers. Three hard thrusts, with a push to her clit from the heel of Regina's hand and Emma found her release.

Smiling with satisfaction, Regina curled back around the blonde, who was still panting from her intense orgasm.

With a quick flick of the the one light still left on above their bed, the two women fell into one another, asleep almost immediately, the sounds and lights of Times Square blaring outside their windows.

* * *

 **A/N**. I am writing this story for a few reasons. First, I wanted to challenge myself to see if I could do it. Second, I love SwanQueen and I love fluff and smut and I wanted to share some holiday fun with others who might enjoy it. But I'd really like to know if you are enjoying it as you read – some feedback? I'd appreciate it. Thank you and I hope you enjoyed!


	9. Chapter 9

"We seriously have to walk 10 blocks for breakfast? Ten blocks? I refuse to road march blondie."

The four women were 'trekking' through Manhattan, on a 'forced road march' according to Zelena. How she even knew the term 'forced road march' was beyond Emma, but of course Zelena was bitching up a storm as they strolled through the city.

"Zelena, this is the best New York bagel place in midtown Manhattan. Can we enjoy the journey as well as the destination please my love?"

At Mulan's sweet words, a small smile crept onto the redheads face, a smile that only Mulan could elicit from Zelena. "Fine," she huffed loudly, solely for Emma's benefit, as her hand crept into Mulan's, their fingers intertwining.

Regina chuckled, winking at her blonde as they strolled hand-in-hand, "How are you enjoying Manhattan babe?"

"It's quite charming, for a loud, congested and full to the brim city."

Emma's eyes smashed together, her nose scrunching, a concerned look flashed through her eyes.

"I mean, I am quite enjoying myself darling! It's just so vastly different from the Enchanted Forest, obviously. And even from Storybrooke. It's so full of life. The vibrancy of the city is contagious. And the efficiency of mass transit is remarkable. It's really inspiring me to bring about some additional changes to Storybrooke as we continue to grow and develop. Do you think we should consider implementing some public transportation in Storybrooke?"

"Hmmm…interesting thought babe. As the footprint of the city continues to expand, it makes sense to consider how we can efficiently move people around the town. I think it would be an added benefit to tourists as well as we become more known as a destination on the coast."

The two continued to discuss the merits of various methods of public transportation while Emma lead them through the city until they arrived at Emma's absolute favorite breakfast place.

"The line is outrageous!" Zelena sneered. "Are the bagels laced in magic and gold? If it's laced with ruby, though, I'm out."

It honestly was a long line. And after almost 30 minutes the four women made their way up to order.

"What's your schmere?" the man barked at Regina.

"Excuse me?" she responded with a raised eyebrow.

"Yaur schmere beautiful. What you want spread on yaur bagel," the large, somewhat grouchy mustached man barked at her from behind the counter.

"We will have two smoked salmon bagels with the works. No onions please. Everything bagels, toasted," Emma responded, putting her hand on Regina's arm softly as she watched the telltale signs of Regina's anger begin to boil under the surface. No one called her beautiful except for Emma.

With a quick look back at Mulan, Emma turned back to the man, "make that four actually please."

"Coffee," Regina remarked with growl in Emma's direction.

"Four coffee's as well."

Regina pushed through the crowd, maneuvering between crying toddlers, angry New Yorkers, ladies who lunched and tourists wearing fanny packs and cameras around their necks to secure the women a table in the back. The look on her face made it perfectly clear to anyone in her way to move and the sway of her hips made everyone stare in wonder.

She sat down, like the Queen she was and waited for the other three to join her, her leg's crossed, back straight, an air of importance wafting off her as people could not help but stare.

Emma soon followed behind, a smirk on her face watching the Queen reign over the dining area.

"So what exactly is it we are eating blondie?"

"This. This is heaven in your mouth."

Regina lifted one perfectly manicured eyebrow as Emma spoke.

"Okay, other than Regina, it's heaven in my mouth. Regina's always the best thing in my mouth."

Mulan giggled. Giggled and Mulan was an unusual and rather adorable sight.

"Oh gag me blondie. I get it," Zelena smirked grabbing a sandwich from the stack.

Unwrapping it slowly, she first sniffed the bagel and turned it over in her hands. "Cream cheese, tomato, capers, and lox on an everything bagel?"

"Yes. Now stop examining, and just eat the damn thing Z."

Mulan was already happily enjoying her breakfast when Emma turned to look at Regina. What Emma saw caused a grin of pure delight to cross her face. Regina was chewing slowly, a smile present on those plump lips. She was leaned back in her chair a bit, eyes closed. She was savoring the moment, the flavors, the delight.

Emma leaned across the space, smiling as she lightly placed her hand on Regina's thigh. When Regina opened her eyes, she found a beaming blondes intense gaze on her, "you like?"

"It's delicious," Regina grinned, "thank you darling. I've never had anything like this before. I think Granny needs to add it to the menu immediately."

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

The women spent the day exploring the city, visiting Grand Central Station to see the beautiful architecture and get some snacks as they continued their exploration. True to their promise, Regina and Zelena also spent a considerable amount of time shopping, Emma and Mulan carrying the bags and chatting as they waited, happy enough to have each other and not have to try things on themselves.

It was later that evening, after they had a lovely dinner that the four women headed to the Gershwin Theatre to see Wicked. Zelena was in a fit over the idea that she would befriend Galinda and absolutely could not wait to see how they played that story.

Upon entering the Gershwin, they entered a beautiful rotunda that was designed to showcase the names and photographs of Broadway's own Theater Hall of Fame. They spent some time wandering and reading about Carol Channing, Julie Harris, Angela Lansbury, Bernadette Peters and others, enjoying the history lesson before the show began.

Upon hearing the telltale ding that the show would start, after procuring four glasses of wine, they headed in to locate their seats.

 _Front row._

Of course. Regina would not miss this for the world.

As "No One Mourns the Wicked" started, a grin grew on Emma and Regina's faces as the scowl on Zelena's intensified.

 _Good news! She's dead!  
The Witch of the West is dead!  
The wickedest witch there ever was  
The enemy of all of us here in Oz  
Is dead!  
Good news!  
Good news!_

 _Look! It's Galinda!_

Two hours later Zelena was practically in a blind rage. Regina was mildly concerned that even in this land without magic, she was going to turn green.

"I have been changed for good? Are you kidding me? Galinda infuriates me. She is so pink. And so nice. And her voice, how could anyone believe that we would be friends…"

Zelena's rant continued as they made their way out of the theatre, all three women trying to control their laughter as Zelena went on and on and on.

"But the show itself, it was rather profound. The message my love," Mulan attempted to interrupt Zelena's continued rant, "the message is about valuing what on the inside. Don't judge a book by its cover. And what amazing things can happen if you open your heart and your mind to others, sometimes who are not just like you. That's a good message for us all to remember."

"Yes, but they had to fake her death! And she had to be banished to live elsewhere even though she never was truly Wicked! They gave her that title because she was different and once you get that title it just never seems to go away," Zelena muttered.

"You make a good point Z," Regina commented. "It's obviously something we have both struggled against. But look at where we are now my darling sister. We are both happy. In love, and loved by two amazing women. And we have been accepted by those we gave us those titles in the first place."

Zelena huffed, until Mulan pulled her hand into hers, intertwining their fingers with a soft look on her face.

"We are lucky to be where we are today," Regina began until Emma interjected.

"All of us are lucky to be where we are today."

"Yes, we are…" both Mulan and Zelena agreed.

"But still. The notion that I would ever be friends with Galinda is absurd."

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

"So who exactly is coming over for Christmas eve dinner mom?" Henry inquired over his bowl of cereal. An 'after-school snack,' he declared when Regina found him in the kitchen after work.

"Well your grandparents and uncle of course, as well as your Aunt Zelena, Mulan and Robyn. Not that many. And Violet and her parents will be coming over for dessert, correct?"

"Yes, they will," Henry nodded, a slight blush appearing on his cheeks. "Thanks for having them over mom. It's pretty cool of you and Ma."

Regina put down the dishes she was drying and made her way over to Henry, she had just finished making dinner for the family of three, it was in the oven waiting for their blond to make her way in the door. Placing her hands on his shoulder, she leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on his forehead. "Anything that makes you happy, my Prince, that I am able to do, that **_we_** are able to do, you know we always will."

"I know mom," Henry grinned, "and I am grateful. So did you and Ma have fun in New York?"

"We had a wonderful time. Taking Zelena to see Wicked on Broadway was a trip. Thank you for helping watch Robyn over at your grandparents."

"It was fine. They are pretty cute, even though they are a lot of work. It's ridiculous how much destruction two little kids can do within a short period of time."

Regina smiled, chuckling. "Oh Henry…even one 4-year-old can cause a significant amount of damage. When you were four, I had dinner baking in the oven, so I left you upstairs in the bathroom alone for just two minutes while I ran down to pull it out when the timer went off. You were going potty so I felt confident you would be preoccupied for the two minutes I needed to run downstairs. When I came back, oh Henry…" Regina laughed, shaking her head while Henry looked wide-eyed at his mother, intrigued as to what came next.

"Well, you had gotten into my makeup and had covered your entire face with a very expensive lipstick of mine, and had eye shadow all over your stomach. You had put mascara all over the cabinets, knocked over two bottles of perfume, one broken and in those few moments I was gone you had transformed into a 'warrior prince' as you described yourself to me when I returned. You were so proud and I was horrified. But you looked so cute even though you had made a disastrous mess that I could not help but burst out laughing. How could I get mad at my sweet little prince who was now a warrior? Even though it – and you – were not exactly an easy mess to clean up after."

By the end of the story Henry's face was buried in his hands as his shoulders rocked up and down. "How have you never told me this story before mom?"

"Oh Henry, I've got so many stories from when you were growing up, I can't always remember the ones I've shared with you and the ones I have not yet."

Regina smile was so bright thinking of young Henry and his antics.

"One Christmas," Regina began when they both heard the front door open and close with a bang.

"Reg! Hen?!" Emma bellowed as they heard her remove her boots with a thump, joint smiles breaking out on their faces, although Regina added a head shake in response to the blonde.

She made her way into the kitchen, walking in to two sets of big, brown, amused eyes trained on her entrance.

"Hello darling."

Emma practically slide over to the brunette, messing with Henry's hair, a "hey kid" thrown his way as she made her way over to his other mother. "Hi beautiful," Emma whispered, leaning in to press a soft kiss to those waiting, plump lips.

"What's going on in here?"

"Well, Mom has been telling me stories about from when I was little and she was about to tell me one from Christmas."

"Ohhhh, I wanna hear," stated Emma as she made her way to the refrigerator, grabbing a bottle of fizzy water.

"Well Henry, we never celebrated Christmas in the Enchanted Forest as you know. But when we came to Storybrooke, the local traditions became part of our way of life. I was never interested in holidays even though I was aware of their existence until you came along. When Emma gave me the greatest gift I've ever received," Regina sent a gentle smile, her eyes connecting with Emma's as she continued, "I knew I wanted to make new traditions with us together.

"So your first Christmas, I decided that the weekend after Thanksgiving we would decorate our Christmas tree together. So when you were five, you were so excited to decorate our tree together. It seems like you loved to get into mischief while I was cooking. We had spent the morning making cookies and the last cookie was in the oven. It was a huge one with your handprints in the center."

"That is so cute," Emma interjected, a wistful smile on her face, Regina reached out to place her hand gently on the blondes, who immediately intertwined their fingers; Regina's thumb gently brushing over her knuckles as she continued the story.

"So as the last cookie was baking, Henry and I went into the living room to begin decorating the tree. I had pulled out our numerous ornament boxes, popping open the tops so we could access the ornaments. The buzzer had gone off for the cookie, so I walked out of the room to get it out of the oven, leaving Henry to begin pulling out the ornaments for us.

So I pulled out the cookie, shut off the oven and then made my way back to the living room. Of course, what I found when I returned…

Henry had pulled out virtually all the ornaments, and thrown them around the entire living room. Some had made it on the tree, but most were strewn about the room. Several broken in his gusto to 'help decorate the tree.'

So Henry, in even just a few minutes, as I've demonstrated, even you knew how to create a complete disaster. Kids are just gifted that way."

"He really destroyed the living room in just a few minutes?"

"Oh yes darling, he did. Gifted. He destroyed rooms, my makeup, tables, walls, etc, all in just a few short minutes time."

"Why did I make such a mess Mom?"

"Beyond that fact that you have your mother's genetics you mean?"

"Hey!" Emma smacked Regina on her ass while Henry broke out into loud laughter.

"Well darling, there is an exceptional amount of truth in that statement," Regina quipped back with a raised brow.

"You gave me good traits too Ma, don't worry. But I do think our messy habits are genetic," Henry explained, turning to his brunette mother, "see Mom, it's beyond my control. I can't be blamed for my inability to clean up after myself. It's Ma's fault."

"Henry Swan Mills. You were raised to best your genetic inclinations towards disaster my dear. I expect better."

"Yes Mom," Henry replied dutifully while Emma chuckled behind Regina's shoulder, pointing at their son.

"So why did I make a mess Mom, beyond my genetic inclinations to do so?"

"Well my Prince, you know your favorite ornament?"

"The cute little green dinosaur on ice skates?" Emma asked.

"That's the one," Regina smiled, loving that after they had decorated the tree together this year, Emma was now part of their tradition. "Well Henry, you explained to me in the way you only could, that the mess was out of your control. You had been searching for the green dinosaur ornament and in your hunt for your favorite ornament, things may have escalated beyond your control in your quest. And yes," Regina grinned, "you did, at five-years-old, used the word escalate."

"Why am I not surprised in the least?" Emma chuckled, "always a brainiac Hen. And see babe, he gets his wicked smarts from me too!"

Another raised eyebrow was sent her way as Regina's laughed again. Once of those unbelievably sexy laughs that Emma loved, causing Emma's eyes to glaze over as she looked at Regina.

"Well, on that note, I'm going to head upstairs to get changed. If you hear the buzzer go off, will you please remove the casserole from the oven? Can you handle that, or will you blame genetic issues if you both to forget?"

"Likely genetic issues, but we will do our best," Emma chuckled as Regina headed upstairs.

"Alright kid. Christmas is in 2 days. What did you get you mom? You did get her something, right?"

"Yes Ma. I got her something. Thanks for helping me brainstorm."

"Of course. And Violet? Do you have her gift as well?"

"Yes Ma. I got her something too. Actually I'm pretty excited about Violet's gift. We were in town walking through some of the new stores and Violet pointed out a scarf, mitten and hat set she thought was quite beautiful. This was in early November, so I got her that already, I know she will love it. I ended up getting her the set in a darker red color…"

"Cranberry-like? Or blood-like?" Emma interrupted.

"More cranberry-like. So I decided to get her a pair of garnet earnings that matched as well."

"You got her earrings as well? Wow Hen!"

"Yeah, Mom helped me pick them out. They are simple but I think she will like them."

"Good Hen. That sounds great. Now, what did you get Mom?"

"Can't tell you. Surprise. You'll find out in two days."

"What!?"

"Surprise Ma. Gotta go wash up before dinner!" Henry chuckled as he bolted out of the room, perfectly timed to the buzzer going off. "Buzzer!" he shouted, laughing from the stairs.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

"Merry Christmas Eve Morning," Emma husked into Regina's neck the following morning. It was early in the morning of Christmas Eve, and Emma and Regina were wrapped up in one another, buried under the blankets on their bed. The women had been busy since they had returned from New York, focused on work and trying to get the city situated before the Christmas holiday.

The Sheriff's department was staffed up now so that Emma had planned to take the entire week off to spend with her family. Her officers knew she was available if something happened that would require her presence, but otherwise, she was off for the week. The Mayor's office was also closed for the week, baring any unforeseen challenges, and the women were looking forward to their first official holiday living together, as a couple, with their son.

"Hi," Regina pulled Emma further into her side, loving the feeling of her skin against Regina's bare body. "You feel heavenly darling. Merry Christmas Eve."

Regina could feel the grin on Emma's face as she buried herself into her brunette, pressing her lips into a soft spot on her neck. The arm slung over Regina's lithe body pulled back to gently run her fingers over Regina's taunt stomach, as she continued to press kisses into Regina's neck.

"Are you happy Emma?"

"Happier than I have ever been in my whole life. You know that, right. Are you?"

"Happier than I have ever been in my whole life, save for Henry, of course."

"Of course Regina, Henry not-with-standing."

"I love you Emma Swan. And I'm so happy to spend this Christmas with you and _our_ son. And begrudgingly our family as well."

Emma chuckled, "oh yes, them too. I had the craziest dream last night. I dreamt I was a player on the Patriots. It was a lot of work. I was exhausted."

"You played football?"

"Yes! For the best football team that has ever existed. Which was kinda cool. But I was just the dude that held the football when the kicker was trying to make the extra point or a field goal."

"You were the holder?"

"That's what that position is called? I always wondered…" Emma drifted off before her head perked up suddenly. "Wait. How the heck did you know that?"

"I do occasionally enjoy watching football Emma," Regina said haughtily.

"You do? Then why have we never watched together?"

"Likely because we spent so many years traveling realms, fighting magical beasts, each other, etcetera. Now that things have calmed down I'd be happy to watch football with you if you are interested."

Emma's mouth hung open. "I literally did not think there was any way you could become sexier and more of a goddess than you already are. And then – you tell me you would be happy to watch football with me. And somehow I was wrong. I love you Regina Mills," Emma laughed, clapping her hands together.

Regina laughed, throwing her head back, one of those undeniably sultry laughs of hers with a twinkle in her eyes. "I'm not that invested Emma, but I'd be happy to watch with you if you are so inclined."

Emma threw herself onto the brunette, peppering her face with kisses as she laughed. "So hot."

As the kisses turned from quick and playful they evolved into softer kisses, ones where their lips just easily slid together, until Emma's grabby hands found themselves softly palming Regina's tiny, pert breasts as their kisses grew in intensity. Pulling Emma fully on top of her, Regina loved the feel of Emma's naked skin pressed against hers, the weight of Emma on top of her was arousing in a way she had no idea she would become addicted too.

With one final kiss, Emma slide down Regina's body, resting her head on Regina's chest as Regina's arms wrapped themselves around her, her fingers constantly moving across the ridges, the dips, the softness of Emma's skin underneath her fingers.

They laid there, together, enjoying the closeness as their bedroom began to light up with the morning sun.

"Babe. Is it, is it…" the excitement in Emma's voice growing suddenly as she lifted her body up from her position on top of Regina. Whatever caught Emma's attention outside was evidently something quite remarkable, as she pushed off the bed and popped up, all her pale skin on display as she ran over to the window.

"It's snowing! It's Christmas Eve morning and it's snowing! Big, puffy snow Regina, come look!"

Emma looked positively radiant. She was like a kid in a candy store, so genuinely delighted looking out the window over their backyard as snow fell on top of the snow already covering the ground.

"It's beautiful babe. I love snow on Christmas. I love it so much," Emma continued on excitedly.

"I also love snow on Christmas, although to be fair, I do love snow anytime I don't have to go to work," Regina chuckled as she pushed herself out of bed and out of the warmth Emma has so rudely vacated. "I find when it's snowing the world just stops for a moment. It so peaceful, like everyone just takes a breath and allows themselves to just be," Regina explained as she wrapped her arms around her naked blonde. Her lips immediately found their way onto Emma's exposed shoulder, pressing kisses as she continued talking.

"I have to be honest though, my darling. While I do find the snow to be immensely picturesque, the most perfect part of this morning is your joy. The way your smile reached all the way to your eyes and back. I love seeing you like this Emma."

"Its just snow Regina. I just love snow," Emma shrugged, her eyes still trained on the sky outside their window.

"It's the _way_ you love the snow Emma. That's what matters darling. That's what matters."

Regina pulled Emma back to bed, pepping kisses to Emma's shoulders. Her neck. Her cheeks, as she turned to lay Emma flat on her back in the center of her bed. With a nod of her head, Emma scooted back up into the pillows, a shy smile on her face as she watched Regina, the woman of her dreams, with her body of a goddess, her face a work of the finest art, and her heart the most open, loving heart she had ever connected with, look at her with lust and love in her deep brown eyes.

Regina bent, using her the tips of her fingers to slowly make her way up Emma's pale legs, watching her squirm in delight at the softest touches, when clearly she wanted more.

"Regina," Emma groaned, "you're evil. You know this, right?"

"I may have heard that a time or two before, yes," she grinned deviously at Emma as she continued to slowly make her way up the blonde. She stopped to press her lips to the inside of Emma's thigh, watching Emma's body squirm from the soft touch.

Pressing her lips to Emma's skin, her hands continuing to touch everywhere all at once, it was a perfect beginning to their first Christmas together.

* * *

 **TBC. Happy Holidays Swen.**


	10. Chapter 10

Christmas Eve day had been a perfectly wonderful disaster.

Zelena had gotten a head cold on their return from New York City, which she passed on to her daughter despite her and Mulan's valiant efforts to ensure Robyn remained illness free. They were both on the mend, the most difficult part of their illness in the past, but both were still tired and a bit crabby. And an extra-crabby Zelena was nothing to snuff at.

There was a small fire down at the docks in the late morning that should not have required Emma's presence, but her deputies suspected foul play was involved so she had to go to the scene to ensure protocol was followed.

This left Regina home alone to finalize preparations for Christmas Eve with the family as both Zelena, Emma and Snow were expected to help that afternoon and only Snow had been able to come by. And while Snow was helpful, a helpful in the kitchen she was not.

Snow and Henry had tackled setting up the dining room table, and ensuring the presents were all under the tree. Henry had to act as assistant chef to Regina, taking over in Zelena's absence earlier that morning and then he had to ensure the firewood was stacked and ready in the backyard alone, when he had expected Emma to help him with that task.

By the time he finished helping his mother in all the ways he was able, he was running late to a volunteer event he and Violet were to participate in. Henry was to dress up as Santa, Violet an elf at a children's holiday party on the lawn in the town square. Regina should have been attending as well as Mayor but was too busy preparing for Christmas Eve, so Henry was attending in her place.

Regina had spent the day furiously cooking up a storm, and simultaneously missing Emma's presence as she prepared for the evening. She was concerned about the fire and her town and she wished she could have seen Henry dressed up as Santa. So while she understood that everything that was happening was beyond her control, she was still frustrated with how the day was progressing.

Snow had taken off to meet Charming and Neal at the event as well, leaving Regina home alone with nothing but Christmas music piping through the house for company. It was not how she envisioned this holiday to go, but she was doing her best to not let it bring her sprits down.

Hearing a knock on her front door, Regina's barely heard the noise as she was so transfixed on ensuring her apple pie was decorated to perfection. Another knock resounded through the mansion before she realized someone was at the door.

Wiping off her hands on a dishtowel, she headed to the front door, slightly confused as she pulled open the door to a very cold gust of air and an only-slightly-grinning-Granny.

" **Granny**! What are you doing here?"

"I heard about the fire down at the docks from one of the deputies who came by from some coffee for the officers down at the scene and heard your Sheriff was there with them as well. I also know that Henry was at the children's party in the town square and realized that you might need some help," Granny explained, pushing her way into the house and shutting the door behind her.

As Granny took off her coat and boots, she picked up the two bags she brought with her and headed to straight to the kitchen, all without a reply from Regina, who had a shocked look on her face. Such blatant displays of kindness still her took her by surprise at times…

"Granny…" Regina replied, a slight shake in her voice.

"You hush little one," Granny spoke, cutting Regina off, "now, how can I help? I need to bake a pie for tonight as well so I brought over my ingredients and plan to use your kitchen. Any issues with that?"

A soft look still on Regina's face, she replied, "no, no problems."

The two women got back to work on their respective pies, moving around the kitchen together with ease. After both pies were in the oven, Granny turned to Regina, "what's next?"

"I need to prepare the roast, and cut up all the vegetables."

"Alright, get on it," Granny barked as Regina pulled out a pile of fresh vegetables to be cleaned and roasted, and the meat that needed to be put in marinade.

As the two women got to work, Regina spoke again after some time.

"Is your plan still to have dinner with just the three of you? You know you are welcome here still if you have changed your mind."

"No little one, we are still going to have dinner tonight just the three of us. Of course we appreciate the offer and you including us in your family meals…"

"Granny. You are family," Regina replied softly.

"Yes, I know. But it's the first Christmas I have at home with my Ruby back in town and her girl. We are always surrounded by so many people at the diner and such, it will be nice to eat with just the three of us. But we will see you tomorrow, yes?"

"Yes Granny, you will see us tomorrow."

With that settled, the two set back to work preparing the meat, the vegetables, checking on their pies as Regina put the final touches on her lasagna as well, prepared at the request of Emma.

The house just felt warmed with Granny's gruff presence, a smile touching the corner's of Regina's mouth as the two cooked together.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

"Mom!" bellowed Henry as he made his way in the door in a storm.

Regina had just returned back home after picking up Emma's present that she had hid at her vault, ensuring Emma would never find it before Regina was ready to give it to her.

After Granny had left and everything was in the oven cooking, the house was prepared so Regina had popped out for only a moment before she came home to take her shower and get ready for the evening. She had checked in with Emma, who was still unsure when she would exactly be home.

Regina heard Henry down in the kitchen from her bedroom, still wrapped in a towel from her shower. "I'm upstairs dear," she responded.

Henry made his way upstairs, knocking softly on his parent's bedroom door.

"Come in Henry," he heard from his mother who sounded like she was in the bathroom. "How was the event?"

"It was great mom. Violet and I had a blast and the kids were all so cute. Mulan brought Robyn and Grandma was there was Neal too. But man it was cold. I need to take a shower to warm up."

"I'm glad you had fun Henry, go take a shower and I'll see you downstairs."

"Love you Mom," Henry called as he ran out of the room.

It was not until it was almost time for their family to come over that Emma finally made it home. She was exhausted and upset for missing the day with Regina. While they had spent Christmases together in the past, never together as couple, living together and Emma had been really looking forward to being home with Regina.

A blast of cold air made it's way into the foyer as Emma burst into the door, quickly shedding her boots, throwing them into the closet and hanging up her coat, stuffing her pockets with her mittens and beanie.

"Babe," she bellowed, finding only Henry in the kitchen, looking sheepish as he was munching on a cookie. "Hen! Where's Reg? And hi kid!"

"She's back upstairs, glad you're home Ma."

"Me too," said Emma as she bound up the stairs.

"Babe," Emma walked into their room, finding Regina bent over her vanity, her perfect figure on display as she wore a beautiful red and black dress that showed off her amazing curves. "Damn babe, you look amazing."

Emma could not help herself, with Regina looking like that. Her hands immediately went to Regina's hips, as Regina's turned to face her blonde.

"Emma…how are you darling? What happened down there?" Regina asked as she leaned into Emma's pink lips for a soft kiss.

"I'm so sorry I've been gone all day," started Emma as she began to undress, first removing her vest, then turning to Regina as she unbuttoned her flannel. "It was crazy at the docks. The fire spread very fast as there was gas in a tank out back they had been using to power up some of the pulleys. There was two explosions and the pattern of the burn made it look like it was intentionally set. We have a few leads as to what might be going on," Emma continued as she removed her flannel, then her henley. Down to her bra, she started to remove her tight, tight, tight blue jeans, struggling to get them down as she made her way into their closet to deposit everything into the hamper.

Regina continued to finish her makeup as Emma continued on with her story, stripping down as she turned on the shower. Regina waltzed in, not missing an opportunity to see all that lean, pale skin on display when it presented itself to her. Smirking, she smacked Emma on the bare behind, Emma jumping as she did not hear Regina enter over the water warming up.

"Hey!"

"Hey you beautiful," Regina grinned, throwing her arms around Emma's bare form pulling her into her smaller body. "I missed you today. Thank you for keeping our town safe," Regina spoke to shining eyes as her hands wandered, touching as much of Emma's body as she could. "Now, my savior, time for you to warm up and shower. Plus, your hair smells a bit like smoke," she playfully smacked Emma's ass again as she pushed her blonde into the shower.

"What can I do to help babe?" Emma asked from under the shower spray.

"Just get your self downstairs stat, everything is ready but guests should be here soon darling."

"You got it. I'll be quicker than Anglasha and the Queen battling the empire."

Regina rolled her eyes playfully as she made her way out of the bathroom and downstairs.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

The house was packed with family, the meal having been devoured with gusto, everyone complimenting Regina on her cooking prowess, as usual. Dessert was finished, Emma, Mulan and David had cleaned up all the dishes as Regina hosted Violet and her family in the living room. Even though the day had not been what they were expecting, the evening was wonderful, everyone full, happy and cozy warm.

"Presents?" Emma asked, walking back into the living room with a fresh mug of cocoa in her hand.

"Yes!" replied Henry, Zelena and the kids.

"It's our tradition to open one present on Christmas Eve before we turn in. We then open the rest of our presents in the morning," Regina explained to Violet's family.

"That's a lovely tradition."

"Can I start?" asked Henry to his mom.

"Of course, I assume you would like to give Violet your present now?" Regina responded, as Henry nodded in confirmation.

Henry retrieved Violet's present from under the tree, sitting down next to her and handed her the bag. Violet gave him a sweet smile as she proceeded to slowly pull out the paper. Of course she loved the scarf and mitten set, explaining to everyone that she had told Henry last month she loved the set, and with Mulan and Violet's mother both commenting on how thoughtful Henry was to remember such detail.

"There's something else in the bag," Henry pointed out, a perma-grin on his face, so happy with Violet's reaction to the gift so far.

Violet pulled out a small box, wrapped in a beautiful silver paper with a gold bow. She gave Henry a quizzical look as she slowly unwrapped the gift.

"Henry…" she breathed out, as she opened the box to find the beautiful earrings inside.

"Do you like them?" he asked nervously.

"Oh Henry, I love them!" she exclaimed, quickly removing her current earrings to put her new ones in. She hugged Henry tightly to say thank you, the family around them smiling at the sight of young love.

The kids each opened one present next, of course Neal choosing to open a special present just for him from 'his Regina.' Henry opened up his present from Violet, which was a new video game he had wanted and a special edition of a Batman comic book that they had seen while out shopping one day.

Emma received a new pair of polarized Ray Ban aviators from her father, 'appropriate for the Sheriff' was the explanation.

As the evening wound down, everyone began to pack up for the night, the children already asleep, being carried to the cars be Mulan and Snow as David packed up and Zelena warmed the vehicle.

It was a lovely evening for everyone. Good food, good friends, good family and good fun. Minus some crabby Zelena moments.

Henry had headed upstairs for the evening with promises of waking them up early to open presents. He was wearing his new pajama set, a tradition that Regina started when he was just a baby. Henry always received a new pair of pajamas on Christmas eve. Some years Regina wore a matching set, sometimes just matching the colors of Henry's. This year, Henry had on a new pair of blue plaid flannel pants with a white henley. Regina and Emma had matching red plaid flannel pants with white henley's as well. Not usual attire for Regina, but she could not pass up the opportunity to include Emma in their Christmas tradition.

As Regina turned off all the lights downstairs, ready to head up to the bedroom, she found Emma, dressed adorably in her new PJ's, leaning against the doorway, looking at their Christmas tree. Sliding up behind her in her stocking feet, Regina wrapped her arms around the blonde, placing her chin on Emma's shoulder.

"Hi," she whispered in the quiet house, "penny for your thoughts?"

"Just admiring our tree. It's so beautiful and, tonight…tonight was wonderful." Turning in Regina's arms, Emma looked up before looking back down at the peaceful quiet smile on Regina's face. Lifting her eyes again, she mouthed "mistletoe" to the brunette.

One hand went to the Regina's cheek, the other snaking around her waist, pulling Regina in for a soft kiss. Lips just gently pressing together, a smile evident on both of their faces through the kiss. As their lips began to slowly move against one another, Regina caught Emma's bottom lip between her teeth, giving it a gentle tug, then using her tongue, she ran it across Emma's bottom lip before seeking entrance into her mouth.

The women fell into each other, losing a sense of time or space, lost in the feeling of each other bodies, the way their mouths moved in harmony together, an equal balance of give and take, push and pull.

Pulling back slowly, arms still firmly wrapped around the other, Regina planted a soft kiss on Emma's nose. "Bed?"

Emma nodded, pulling Regina's hand into hers as they made their way up the stairs, together.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

Christmas morning in the Swan Mills household was perfection for Emma. Regina and Henry had traditions they had shared for many years together, ones they had shared with Emma all before Christmas morning. No matter how old Henry was, Christmas traditions meant something to the Mills family and both members were thrilled to now include Emma.

"Moms," Henry called, knocking on the door to his parents bedroom. "Moms, are you up?" he called.

Emma and Regina had already been up for an hour, Regina had snuck downstairs to make coffee for the pair, and returned to the bedroom to snuggle up with Emma while they waited for Henry to wake up.

"Come in kid!"

"Merry Christmas Moms!" Henry exclaimed, coming into their room and plopping on the edge of their king size bed.

"Merry Christmas my prince," Regina whispered as she pulled Henry into a long hug, closing her eyes as she held her little boy who was now bigger than her.

"Merry Christmas kid," Emma responded, putting her arms around them both, placing a kiss on Henry's messy hair, then on the top of Regina's head as well.

"Did someone say something about presents? I swear I heard the term presents and open immediately being thrown around…" Henry grinned at his moms.

"Huh," replied Emma, a confused look on her face. "I could have sworn that I heard, 'kid's gonna make his moms breakfast in bed'…how about you babe?"

Regina chuckled. "That does not even happen on Mother's Day Emma, you might be waiting a long time for if that is the expectation!"

"Hey!" Henry pouted. "I brought you coffee on Mother's Day. But I inherited my cooking skills from Ma. You told me I am a great sous chef, not chef!"

The women laughed at Henry's shocked expression, Regina grabbing their son to press a kiss to his forehead. "We all can't be amazing at everything Henry."

"Alright, alright, I'm ready for presents too. Let's do this," Emma chuckled, hopping out of bed, walking to the other side as she stretched, offering her hand to Regina to pull her out.

Henry hopped off the bed and took off downstairs ahead of his mothers.

"I love that he's still excited for Christmas morning," Regina said wistfully.

"The kid will get a bunch a presents just for being ours, of course he's excited," Emma chuckled.

Still holding hands, the women made their way downstairs to find Henry in the kitchen, knowing his mothers would stop there first to get coffee.

After refilling their mugs, they headed into the living room to open presents.

The plan was to open in a circle, each opening something so the other family members could watch. Regina insisted on them opening a family present first. Emma and Henry ripping into the package, they found three matching Christmas mugs, red and green stripes with their names in gold across each mug.

Matching mugs. It might be a simple gift to some people. But to Emma, it was something that she never had before. Matching family mugs, in their matching family pajamas.

Holding it tight to her chest, Emma closed her eyes, willing to compose herself for a moment. To cherish this moment with her family, in their home, together, the three of them. It just felt so significant, as she felt Emma and Henry's hands softly on her knee's, giving her the time to just feel, while also knowing her family was there with her.

She took a deep breath, turning to Regina she opened her eyes, "its just perfect Regina. Thank you."

Taking the mugs, Regina went to the kitchen to fill Emma's and Henry's with hot chocolate with cinnamon on top, making herself another cup of coffee. With the new mugs balanced on a tray, she returned to the living room to find Emma and Henry had sorted all the gifts into piles in front of each of them.

With a smile to Henry, she handed him his mug, and a gentle kiss to Emma, they started on presents once again, holiday music now playing softly in the background.

Henry received some new clothes, a few more video games he had been asking for and several new books in a series he was ridiculously invested in, a gift card to buy some new music and movies he wanted and a brand new MacBook. Opening that, he shrieked, so excited to have a new laptop for his games, to watch movies, 'and to do schoolwork,' Regina reminder with a grin.

Regina had purchased a few family presents, some new games for them to play together, as well as a new set of speakers for the kitchen as they all liked to have music on when cooking and eating together.

Both Emma and Regina had opened a few fun presents, new fuzzy socks, a new CD and robe for Emma, new slippers, some candy and little treats for them both. Regina had bought Emma a new set of chargers for her phone, 'to leave strategically around the house,' – or as Emma noted – so she would stop stealing Regina's all the time – with a grin. Emma bought a 'boot organizer' for the hall closet, nothing that her and Henry were going to be 'more organized next year' with a grin.

And as Regina opened her last box, she gasped in shock. A new pair of shiny black louboutins with little bows on the backs. "Emma!" Regina gasped in shock. "Louboutins! I'm in love! These are gorgeous. I can't…Emma!" Regina was practically giddy.

"I saw you looking at them with awe in your eyes when we were in New York but noticed you did not buy them for yourself. I'm happy you are happy," Emma grinned.

"Oh yes, darrrrling. They are so sexy, I love them," Regina laughed.

Emma leaned into her love, whispering in her ear, "I was hoping you might model them for me tonight when we are alone. Wearing nothing else?" Regina giggled. That was a sound Emma could easily get used to.

"Em-ma!" Regina laughed, swatting her on the arm, but playfully winking and nodding her head in the affirmative.

"Moms!" Henry groaned, shaking his head.

"So we actually have one last present for you Mom," Henry continued on, nodding to Emma in an attempt to quickly move away from the shoes. "It's from both Ma and I, to you. You do so much and take of both of us Mom, and we wanted to do something fun for all of us, as a family."

Emma turned behind her and pulled out from under the sofa an envelope hidden away. It was flat, and wrapped beautifully in gold paper with a shiny red bow.

Regina already had tears in her eyes as the two people she loved most in the world handed her the gift.

She held it in her hands, looking at it like she was scared to open it. "Go on Mom, open it!"

She nodded her head then carefully began to unwrap the gift. She pulled out the envelope, unsure of what was inside. Opening it up, out fell a brochure for Disneyland and then a set of brochures for Santa Barbara, CA.

"What is this?"

"We booked a family vacation for us! The three of us Mom! Ma and I planned the whole thing."

"A family vacation?" Regina asked slowly. "Really?"

Looking at Emma, a hopeful smile on her face, nodding. "Henry and I thought it was time the three of us got away from Storybrooke for a little while and went on an adventure together that involved no magic, no portals, no dragon or wizard's and just fun. What do you say?"

At that a huge smile broke out across Regina's face. "That sounds amazing." She was taken aback. How much had changed in her life to get to the point she was at this day. From a young girl full of love and hopes and dreams to an evil queen, thinking the only way should would be happy was by taking it away from others. What she came to realize is that there was no shortage of happiness in the world. No limit on how much happy there was to go around. And today, she was happier than she ever thought possible.

"This, Emma, Henry, this is perfect! Tell me everything!"

Emma and Henry proceeded to tell Regina everything they had planned in immense detail. They were doing three days at Disneyland and California Adventure. Henry thought it was time they went to see how Disney bought to life the stories of the people they loved and maybe educate a few people about the so-call-evil-queen. Then, they were going to spend another four days in Santa Barbara, relaxing at a huge resort that had several pools and Emma, grinning, informed Regina of the spa treatments she had planned for Regina, and a few for them both to do together.

The entire family was ecstatic. "When do we go!?"

"So ummm, now that you are excited Mom, you can't get mad at us for when we booked the trip, right?" Henry began.

"Henry Daniel – when you start a sentence like that of course I become concerned." Turning to her blonde, she raised an eyebrow, "Emma?"

"We leave in two days! We wanted to spend New Years Eve together in California! We already have most of the days already taken off work so it should be fine and we were so excited Regina we just really want to go and I've never gone on a family vacation before unless you count the time we went the Underworld and that really sucked and please don't be mad at having it happen so soon we are just so excited…" Emma spit out without taking a breath, Regina managing to maintain a straight face through Emma's pained response.

Chest heaving, Emma gave Regina the best puppy dog eyes she could muster, hitting Henry to ensure he did the same.

Looking between the two, Regina arched an eyebrow and held firm until she burst out laughing herself. "You too are too much."

"Too much?" Henry questioned.

"Let's say the apple does not fall far from the tree. I'm thrilled!" she exclaimed! "Let's start packing now, I can't wait!"

"Oh thank all that is holy," Emma muttered to herself as she threw her arms around Regina, pulling her in for a hug.

"One more present," announced Regina, pulling away from Emma's grip. "I'll be right back, stay here please you," she pointed to Emma with a grin.

A moment later, Regina returned to the room carrying a ridiculously large box almost as big as her. Emma's eyes grew wide as she tried to jump up grab the heavy object from Regina.

"I've got it darling. Sit down."

Emma did as she was instructed, returning to her seat on the floor next to Henry. Regina carefully placed the box in front of Emma as she began to explain. "This is for you darling. What's inside was given to me with approval from your father, actually. It's something meaningful to you and your parents, and something I felt should live in your home now, with us."

Emma was flabbergasted and completely perplexed. She turned to Henry who shrugged his shoulders, unaware of what his mother had planned for her.

"Alright," Emma began to unwrap the box. Underneath the wrapping was a plain box, the words, 'this side up' plastered on the top. Regina pulled out a pair of box cutters, handing them wordlessly over to Emma, who took them and began to cut open the tape keeping the box top closed.

Once the tape was broken, Emma carefully opened the box, only seeing the sleek black top of another box inside. Carefully she lifted the contents outside of the box, gasping when she saw what was inside.

It was a mounting box, the back of the interior lined in a creamy silk fabric. Mounted inside was Emma's father's sword. Emma gasped, the sword shined to perfection, the golden handles shimmering brightly against the cream colored background. It was truly beautiful, the sword's hard edges against the regal cream silk.

"Wow," Henry gaped, "that is so cool."

Emma was stunned into silence. Her father's sword. Prince Charming's sword, mounted for her, her family's sword that would now live in their home.

"Regina…" Emma's eyes flew up to the brunettes.

"Do you like it?" she asked hesitantly.

"I…" Emma stuttered out. "This is beautiful. This is amazing. I feel like my heart is beating outside of my chest Regina. My father really gave you permission to put this in our house?"

"Yes," she smiled softly. "We had lunch one day a few months ago, we just happened to be at Granny's at the same time and so we sat together to eat. We were talking about the upcoming holidays and what plans we should make for the family. I had been thinking about what we might add to our house that was something that truly represented you and the Charming family so I brought it up to him that day. I asked about the family crest or something he and Snow might have from the Enchanted Forest that we could have for you, and it lead us to the talk of his sword and how we was so happy that he didn't have to use it anymore since things have changed so dramatically in town. I asked what he was using it for, and he said it was just hidden away in a closet to keep away from Neal. We both were discussing possible options and it came to us both, he wanted you to have it, and I thought I could facilitate that by making it something we could put up in our home."

"Regina, this is amazing. I love it, so much." Emma was astonished, truly. "Where…" she trailed off.

"I was actually thinking it could go over the fireplace. What do you think?"

"Yes!" cried Henry. "That's perfect mom!"

"Really? Here, in the living room?"

"Yes darling, here in the living room. Right over the fireplace for us to see everyday, holding a prominent place in our home. That's exactly what I was thinking."

Emma nodded her head, tears in her eyes. "I'd…I'd love that very much," she said as she continue to nod, a soft smile on her face, her eyes bright with love.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

The Swam Mills family had a really wonderful day together. They hung up Emma's sword in the living room, Henry tucked himself into a corner in front of the fire as he set up a his new computer and Regina began to pack for the trip for the three of them after they had a huge pancake breakfast together in the dinning room.

They spent the afternoon at Granny's with all of the family and many friends to celebrate Christmas day together. It was a potluck to make it easier on all the families who attended. The Swam Mills crew stayed for several hours until late in the evening when they headed home.

They all got back into their matching pajama's, Emma starting another fire in the fireplace as Henry continued to play on his computer, Regina began reading a new book she received from Snow and Emma read the latest chapters in the antics of Anglasha and The Queen in her favorite story.

It was the perfect ending to a lovely day.

 **SQ*SQ*SQ**

The next morning the Emma and Regina woke up early again, spending the quiet time together in bed as they slowly woke up.

Emma threw on her new robe and went to the kitchen to make them coffee, noticing that once again, it was snowing in Storybrooke. Excited for a day at home with Regina and Henry, hoping they could find some time to play in the snow in between packing for their holiday.

Emma headed back upstairs with a spring in her step as she made her way into the bedroom, stopping in her tracks as she carefully opened the door.

Regina was sitting up in bed, the duvet around her middle, her naked chest exposed, nipples hard in the cool air. She had on her thick-rimmed glasses, reading through some messages on her phone, hair a mess from their lovemaking the night prior. She was stunning.

"Wow," Emma sighed, "you are so beautiful Regina."

Regina's eye flicked up, a slow smile spreading across her face. "Thank you darling. And thank you for making us coffee. **Gimme** ," she grinned.

"Can we go play in the snow today babe? It's snowing again and the backyard is covered and before Hen and I go shovel, can we please all play? When we are done, you can come inside to shower or take a bath to warm up while Hen and I shovel and salt. Promise!"

How could Regina say no when Emma was so delightfully happy and free? While playing in snow was not something Regina counted as 'fun' exactly, she would participate if that is what her family wanted.

"Yes Em-ma. We can go play in the snow. But first, you get naked and get back in this bed, this instant."

"Yes Mam'!" she grinned, shucking off her robe to the floor and sliding back into bed, tucking herself into Regina's side.

They spent the next hour or so in bed, quietly talking, laughing, kissing and enjoying the morning before Henry would come looking for them for breakfast.

They all ate together, Henry looking forward to playing the snow with his moms as well.

After dressing in a several layers of warm gear, the three Swan Mills family members headed outside. They spent an hour having a snowman building competition, each focused on creating the best snowman they could. Regina's was designed to perfection – with matching eye's, her scarf around its neck. Emma's was crazy and adorably with fake hair sticking out of the top, a huge toothy grin on its face. Henry's was also designed to perfection, thick sticks as arms, and an adorable tuft of hair on the snowman's head.

Regina took a photo of all three snowmen, shooting off a text to Snow and Zelena to judge the winner. The family had bet the last slice of Regina's apple pie on the winning snowman, Henry and Emma both serious about winning the pie, much to Regina's happiness.

Following the snowman building contest, a huge snowball fight broke out, Henry taking the brunt of the snowballs as his mother's pelted him together, screaming in laughter as they ran around after Henry, who at one point was laughing so hard he ended up in a ball on the ground in hysterics.

It was a memorable afternoon. One just like Emma always had dreamed of.

Emma helped Henry up from the ground after they all collected themselves and nodded her head at her son.

"I'm going to get some Kleenex, be right back," she announced.

"I can go in to get them," Regina offered. But luckily Henry knew what was going on, so he began to distract his brunette mother with the pelting of anther snowball.

Emma headed inside, removing her boots and as took a deep breathe, taking a moment to center herself.

"You can do this Emma. It's only Regina. She loves you. And you love her. You can do this," she spoke to herself as she retrieved the item she was looking for, stuffing it carefully into her pocket, zipping it up inside as she headed back out to play.

"Darling, are you alright?" Regina asked when Emma reappeared.

Emma nodded her head in the affirmative, but her pale face caused Regina even more concern as she trekked through the snow back over to Emma. "Are you okay Emma, you look pale?"

"I'm good Reg, I promise."

Seeing the two of them together, Henry announced he need to use the restroom. With a wave, he headed inside, leaving the two women alone in the falling snow.

Taking Regina's hand into Emma's – Emma pulled Regina close, throwing her arms around the bundled up brunette.

"Hi," Emma spoke softly to the woman in front of her.

"Hi beautiful," Regina grinned back. "Are you enjoying yourself darling?"

"Oh yes!" Emma replied excitedly. "Today's been wonderful. Do you agree?"

"Better than I could have ever dreamed, actually," Regina spoke softly, brown eyes trained on hazel. The moment suddenly felt heavier than it had before as Emma's eyes spoke volumes as they connected with Regina's.

"Regina," Emma began. "Being with you, and Henry, is more than I could have ever dreamed I would have. Family is a word that was completely foreign to me as I grew up. It was something I always craved, but only knew of when I could watch television shows that showed people who loved each other beyond all else. A family to me meant forever. People who loved you always and never let go. It took me some time to understand what family meant when it came to my parents because there was just so much complexity there. I am obviously so grateful to have them in my life but for the first time, I now truly know what family means. It's you. And Henry. And me. Together. The three of us are a family and I never want to let you go. It took me so long to let my walls down, to realize that it was okay to be happy, to want the best for myself and not settle for what was in front of me, but to fight for what was right for me."

Regina's eyes were glazed over in tears as Emma's hands shook in hers. "Today, this holiday, everything that has happened since we became a couple, and me moving in here, has shown me what I want for the rest of my life. And I hope that you feel the same."

Emma got down on one knee, still holding Regina's hand.

" _Regina Mills, will you marry me_?"

Dropping to her knee's she threw her arms around Emma, tears streaming down her face as she nodded her head, to chocked up to speak.

Pulling back, Emma, still holding her breath, looked at Regina. "Yes? Is that a yes? You're killing me babe!"

"Oh Emma – **yes, yes yes**! There is nothing that will make me happier in this life than to become your wife."

"Yes! So we are getting married?!" Emma exclaimed pressing her mouth to Regina's before she could answer, her own tears mixing with Regina's as they kissed through their happy tears.

"Yes darling, we are getting married," Regina replied through their kisses.

"Give her the ring Ma!" Henry shouted from their bedroom window where he watched the whole scene, videotaping it, as he promised his grandmother who knew that Emma had planned to propose at some point over break.

"Hen, get down here!" Emma laughed, throwing off her gloves to take the ring box she had placed in her pocked carefully out, opening it to Regina's blown eyes.

Another turn of Emma's stomach occurred as she presented Regina the ring she had carefully made for her. It was three stones, one representing each of them, surrounded by smaller stones on a beautiful rose gold band. It was simple and elegant, just like Regina.

"Do you?" Emma asked, as Regina just gaped at the ring.

"Three stones?" she asked.

"One for you, one for me and one for our son. It represents our family," Emma explained.

"It's perfect Emma," Regina's voice wavered as she spoke. Emma carefully took the ring out of the box and placed it on Regina's shaking hand. Once the ring was on, Emma grabbed her fiancé by the waist, pulling her in tight for another kiss as their son burst out the back door.

He ran to his mothers, a huge grin on his face as he threw himself down, his arms going around the two women, holding them tightly.

"You said yes, right mom?"

"I said yes Henry," Regina nodded, a huge grin on her face. "Of course I said yes. Did you know about this young man?"

"Maaaaayyyyybbbbbbeeee," he grinned. "So did Grandma! Can you believe we both kept the secret?"

"I'm astonished," they all laughed.

"So when's the wedding?!" Henry asked.

"How about let's get inside first before we start planning the wedding, all right kid? We have a trip to CA first to celebrate!" Emma grinned.

The three members of the soon to be official Swan-Mills family headed inside, Emma in the center, her left arm slung around Henry's shoulders, her right arm around Regina's waist, who was tucked tightly in her side.

 **Together**. Like they would always be.

* * *

The End. Thank you kindly for reading my festival-of-holiday-fluff. I've very much appreciated the kind words I've received along the way. Best wishes to all of you this holiday season and in the year ahead. -TiAdoro914


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